Principal Investigator
Kyle M. McCall
Assistant Professor
Email: Kyle.McCall (at) UTDallas.edu
Office: RL 4.406
Phone: 972-883-5753
Prof. Kyle M. McCall received his Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Northwestern University in 2019 under the joint supervision of Professors Mercouri Kanatzidis and Bruce Wessels, where he studied metal halides for use as semiconductor radiation detectors. He worked as a postdoctoral researcher under Professor Maksym V. Kovalenko in the Functional Inorganic Materials laboratory at ETH Zürich from 2019 until 2021, exploring novel materials for fast neutron detection and light emission. Prof. McCall’s research at the University of Texas at Dallas focuses on the synthesis and characterization of complex semiconductors for energy applications including solar energy conversion, radiation detection, and light emission.
Researchers seeking to join our Team should visit the Contact page for open research positions.
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dhritiman Banjeree
Email: Dhritiman.Banerjee@UTDallas.edu
Dr. Dhritiman Banerjee received his M.Sc. in Applied Physics and PhD in Physics from the Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines), Dhanbad, India, in 2014 and 2020, respectively. His experience in optoelectronic materials includes PhD work in luminescent polymers under Prof. Asit Kumar Kar and postdoctoral research at the University of Oklahoma from 2021-2022 under Prof. Bayram Saparov studying hybrid silver and copper halides. He also served as an assistant professor in the Department of Physics at C. V. Raman Global University from 2020−2021. Dr. Banerjee joined the McCall Lab as a postdoc fellow in 2022, and his current research interests focus on the design and development of luminescent novel hybrid metal halides and tuning their photophysical properties for applications in optoelectronics and radiation detection.
Graduate Students
Haimanti Majumder
Email: Haimanti.Majumder@UTDallas.edu
Haimanti Majumder completed her B.S in chemical engineering and polymer science at SUST, Bangladesh in 2018. She then joined UT Rio Grande Valley for a master’s in chemistry in Spring 2020. Her research at UTRGV focused on green and sustainable renewable energy. She joined UTD as a materials science and engineering PhD student in Spring of 2022. Her research work in the McCall Lab is focused on semiconductor materials for luminescent solar concentrators.
Emily Brand
Email: Emily.Brand@UTDallas.edu
Emily Brand received her B.S in Chemistry at Texas Tech University. She then joined the department of Chemistry and Biochemistry PhD program at the University of Texas at Dallas. While at UTD, she is working on the synthesis and analysis of low-dimensional inorganic scintillators under the leadership of Dr. Kyle McCall in the department of Materials Science and Engineering.
Kulatheepan Thanabalasingam
Email: Kulatheepan.Thanabalasingam@UTDallas.edu
Kulatheepan “Theepan” Thanabalasingam is a Chemistry PhD student at the University of Texas at Dallas, working in solid-state materials research. He is originally from Sri Lanka and moved to the USA in 2017 when he joined the University of South Dakota for his master’s in chemistry (conferred in 2019), specializing in green energy applications. He enjoys deciphering new crystal structures and solving mysteries that lie beneath the structural characteristics of solid-state materials. He is a vegetarian and likes to spend his free time cooking new recipes, photographing wildlife, driving, and knitting. He is a good troubleshooter and enjoys fixing machinery ranging from phones to cars.
Undergraduate Students
Sahithi Chundu
Email: Sahithi.Chundu@utdallas.edu
Sahithi “Sahi” Chundu is a junior at The University of Texas at Dallas studying electrical engineering and economics. Her work with the McCall lab involves synthesizing and characterizing hybrid metal halide materials for x-ray scintillation and fast neutron detection. She plans to apply her education and materials science research towards a career in sustainability management. In her free time, Sahi enjoys hiking, running, painting, watching (or performing!) stand-up comedy, and going to music festivals.
Connor Hoy
Email: Connor.Hoy@utdallas.edu
Connor Hoy is a junior studying biomedical engineering at the University of Texas at Dallas. His main research focus within the McCall lab is the synthesis of low-dimensional hybrid metal halide scintillators for fast-neutron and gamma ray detection. In his leisure time, Connor enjoys hiking, reading, and splitting hairs about the methodologies used to produce baked goods.
Alumni
Andrew Gruber
Email: Andrew.Gruber@UTDallas.edu
Andrew “Groobo” Gruber is a senior undergraduate chemistry major at UT Dallas with a minor in nanoscience and technology. His work in the McCall group is focused on doping luminescent cadmium halide compounds and observing any changes to their physical and optical characteristics, as well as being a mentor for new researchers. He enjoys working on his car and getting his hands dirty in his free time, as well as occasionally going to the Texas Renaissance Festival. He plans to continue his research by exploring sustainable materials and carbon capture at the United States Department of Energy after receiving his bachelor’s degree.
Hannah Wilder (REU, 2023)
Email: Hannah.Wilder@UTDallas.edu
Hannah Wilder is an REU student at UTDallas. She is from Fort Valley, Georgia, and is a Chemistry major at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia. Her work in the McCall group is focused on synthesizing and modifying cadmium halides to research their optical properties. In her free time, Hannah enjoys playing the violin and The Legend of Zelda.
Kayla Cooper (REU, 2022)
Kayla Cooper is an REU student at UTD, and a rising senior in chemistry major attending Oglethorpe University in Georgia. She enjoys baking and hanging out with family. Her work in the McCall group focused on synthesizing doped copper halides and characterizing the change in light emission characteristics. She hopes to use her summer REU experience at UTD to find more STEM opportunities in the future.
Postdoctoral Researchers