A pioneer in nanotechnology, Prof. Ajayan has been one of the key figures in the development of carbon nanotube technologies. He is currently the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Department, Rice University, Texas. Dr. Ajayan’s group moved from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) after ten years there as a key player in nanomaterials and nanotechnology applications. He was the Director of the RPI Interconnect Focus Center, New York. He is a well-known materials researcher in areas of nanomaterials, electron microscopy, and nanocomposites. His research goals are oriented towards developing multifunctional nanostructures and hybrid platforms that would have applications in diverse fields such as alternative energy storage, structural composites, sensors, electronic devices and bio-medical applications. Prof. Ajayan has authored or co-authored more than 250 publications, two books, and his work has received more than 12,000 citations. He is on the editorial boards of several materials science and nanotechnology journals, and serves as advisory board member in many nanotech companies. Prof. Ajayan has won several awards such as the MRS medal and the Burton medal from the Microscopy Society of America. He was selected as one of 2006 Scientific American 50 by the Scientific American Magazine and has also been selected as Nano50^TM Innovator by Nanotech Briefs (2007). Prof. Ajayan received his bachelor degree from Banaras Hindu University (India) in 1985, doctoral degree from Northwestern University in 1989 and had research positions in many countries including Japan, France and Germany.