Gautam Radhakrishna Desiraju (born 21 August 1952 in Madras, Tamil Nadu, India) is an Indian structural chemist and emeritus professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore. His research focuses on crystal engineering, supramolecular chemistry, and the nature of weak hydrogen bonds.
Education
- B.Sc., St. Xavier’s College, University of Bombay, 1972
- Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana‑Champaign, 1976 (under David Y. Curtin and Iain C. Paul)
Academic career
- 1976–1978: Research scientist, Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, NY, USA
- 1978–1979: Research fellow, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
- 1979–2009: University of Hyderabad – lecturer (1979), reader (1984), professor (1990)
- 2009–present: Indian Institute of Science – professor (later emeritus) in the Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit
Desiraju has supervised approximately 40 Ph.D. students and mentored around 100 post‑doctoral researchers, authoring more than 475 peer‑reviewed articles. He serves on editorial advisory boards of Chemical Communications and the Journal of the American Chemical Society and is editor‑in‑chief of Polyhedron. He chaired the inaugural Gordon Research Conference on Crystal Engineering (2010) and was president of the International Union of Crystallography (2011–2014).
Scientific contributions
Desiraju pioneered the concept of the “supramolecular synthon,” a recurring structural motif that guides the design of organic crystal structures. His work has elucidated how weak hydrogen bonds and other intermolecular forces dictate crystal packing, enabling rational design of functional materials. He has authored influential books, including Crystal Engineering: The Design of Organic Solids (1989).
Honors and awards
- Ewald Prize of the International Union of Crystallography (2026)
- Alexander von Humboldt Forschungspreis
- TWAS Award in Chemistry
- Honorary doctorates: Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (Argentina), Rayalaseema University (India), Gulbarga University (India)
- Acharya P. C. Ray Medal (2015) – University of Calcutta
- ISA Medal for Science (2018) – University of Bologna
- Van der Waals Prize (2023) – International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Strasbourg
Desiraju’s contributions have had a lasting impact on crystal engineering, materials science, and the broader chemical community, shaping contemporary approaches to the design and understanding of molecular solids.