PhD admissions, January 2027
RudhLab welcomes enquiries from prospective PhD students for PDEU’s January 2027 admission cycle. Build CFD methods, explore complex flows, and advance scientific computing. Applications close on 23 November 2026.
About the group
RudhLab is in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU), Gandhinagar. Our work brings together fluid mechanics, numerical analysis, and high-performance computing. We develop our own simulation software and use it to study fluid flow, heat transfer, and coupled physical phenomena.
We are looking for students who want to understand not only what a simulation predicts, but also why its numerical method can be trusted.
Research directions
GPU-accelerated CFD and scientific software
Efficient, accurate solvers in CUDA C++ using lattice-Boltzmann, finite-volume, and immersed-boundary methods, with attention to conservation, stability, verification, and performance.
Multiphase and interfacial flow
Droplet and bubble motion, interface evolution, phase-change processes, and multiphysics coupling.
Flow instability, turbulence, and control
Vortex shedding, bluff-body wakes, transition, and the effects of porous structures and complex geometries.
Computational heat transfer and sustainable energy
Natural convection, thermal management, passive cooling, and coupled thermal–fluid problems.
Projects may also use physics-guided machine learning, reduced-order modelling, or uncertainty quantification where these offer a defensible scientific benefit. See our research and simulations.
What the PhD involves
- Mathematical modelling of the flow or heat-transfer problem.
- Implementing the method, in the group’s in-house software and open scientific-computing tools.
- Verification and validation against analytical solutions and reference data.
- Physical interpretation of the results.
- Writing up the work for publication.
Want a head start? Work through the getting started guide.
Who should enquire
Applicants from mechanical, aerospace, chemical, and related engineering fields, and applicants with an applied mathematics or computational science background, may be considered where eligible under PDEU’s admission rules.
Sound fundamentals and an interest in developing computational tools are essential. Experience with Python, C/C++, Julia, OpenFOAM, Linux, or GPUs helps, but prior CUDA experience is not required.
Important dates
19 Oct 2026
23 Nov 2026
Application deadline
4 Dec 2026
Written aptitude test and discipline-wise interviews
10 Dec 2026
Admission-offer list published
To be announced
Start of the academic session
PDEU’s official policy governs eligibility, exemptions, selection, and dates. Check PDEU Admissions for authoritative updates.
How to enquire and apply
For an initial research discussion, email Anirudh with the subject “Prospective PhD — RudhLab — January 2027”, and include:
- Your CV as a PDF.
- A short summary of your research interests.
- Links to relevant code or projects, if you have them.
Email Anirudh →anirudh.kulkarni@sot.pdpu.ac.in
A research enquiry is not a university application. You must also apply through PDEU’s admission portal before 23 November 2026. Admission is decided by the university’s selection process.