Dr. Athira K. S. is a Scientist-B at the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), Hyderabad, working in the area of additive manufacturing. Her research primarily focuses on electron beam melting (EBM), with current efforts directed toward the development of single crystals for high-temperature applications. Alongside this work, she contributes to studies on laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and microstructural characterization of additively manufactured alloys.

Dr. Athira completed her Ph.D. and M.Tech from the Department of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering at IIT Hyderabad, where her research involved welding and microstructural studies of Ni- and Co-base superalloys. Her doctoral work included laser welding of a newly developed W-free precipitation-strengthened Co-base superalloy and keyhole-mode gas tungsten arc welding of industrially relevant Ni-base alloys such as Haynes 282 and Inconel 740H. This work provided insights into weld pool behavior, heat input effects, microstructure evolution, and hardness response in advanced high-temperature materials.

Before joining ARCI, she gained diverse research exposure through collaborations and internships. At IIT Hyderabad, she contributed to a joint project with Pratt & Whitney involving LPBF of the Ni-base superalloy Inconel 939 and its post-processing analysis. Her early research experience spans CALPHAD-based thermodynamic modelling of high-entropy alloys, size-dependent deformation studies of Nb microwires at IISc Bangalore, and projects in biomaterials and nanostructured systems during research fellowships at IISc, NCBS, and Nanyang Technological University.

Her technical expertise includes electron beam melting, laser powder bed fusion, laser welding, keyhole GTAW, and a wide range of materials characterization techniques such as SEM, TEM, EBSD, XRD, nanoindentation, and mechanical testing. She has worked extensively with Ni- and Co-base superalloys and Ti-6Al-4V, along with experience in tools such as Thermo-Calc and MATLAB.

Dr. Athira has authored peer-reviewed publications in journals such as Materials Science and Technology, Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance, and Journal of Materials Science. She has been recognized with awards including the OmVimla Award for Innovation in Materials for Society at IIT Hyderabad and the IFSM Young Researchers Award.

At ARCI, she aims to advance additive manufacturing for high-performance materials, with a current emphasis on understanding process–microstructure relationships during EBM of superalloys and exploring pathways to fabricate single-crystal components. Her long-term interest lies in bridging processing science with practical requirements for aerospace and energy applications, contributing to materials development through careful experimentation, characterization, and collaboration.