I intend to work towards a doctoral degree to pursue my research interests in the field of Embedded Systems. The world has seen proliferation of embedded devices in recent times. These devices solve many existing problems and exciting research on their potential use in futuristic applications is being carried out. Because of my varied academic and professional background, I firmly believe that I can make worthwhile contributions to these research efforts.

Goal oriented is how I would describe myself. I wasn’t always so focused though. In fact when I passed my school examinations with just seven marks short for a merit list, I had no idea about what I wanted to do. My decision of opting for a diploma in Industrial Electronics instead of a high school was mainly influenced by feedback from one of my senior friends. The rigors of this extensive and well designed course made me appreciate potential of Electronics technology. But it was my seventh semester subject, ‘Microprocessors & Applications’, and final year project, ‘Smart Scale: a digital weighing machine’, which really defined my future direction. The project had an analog and a digital subsystem and software written in 8085 assembly. With its mix of hardware and software, the project allowed me to practically apply the knowledge gained so far. This experience of building a working system after overcoming various challenges proved instrumental in my decision to choose Electronics for my undergraduate study.

During my undergraduate years, solid technical foundation laid during diploma and my own pursuit of further knowledge helped me learn far more than what I did in my academic courses. As part of collaboration program between my college and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, I had access to wealth of information in IIT library. There I learnt about 8051 microcontroller for the first time while reading papers in embedded systems area. Fascinated by its capabilities and desire to put my knowledge of C to practical use, I decided to implement an 8051 simulator using C. It was an ambitious effort that took around a year to complete. Nevertheless, being able to successfully implement and run my 8051 related laboratory assignments on it gave me immense satisfaction. Whether it was the simulator or my final year project, DSP tutor, I always aimed at going beyond academics and learning practically.

My interaction with IIT, Bombay faculty and academic projects during undergraduate years developed my interest in the field of Computer Science (CS). After completing undergraduate study, I had option of either continuing my education or gaining professional experience. I chose later as it allowed me to support my family and opened up possibility of self financing my higher education. My work at Tata Infotech Ltd. (TIL) as software engineer familiarized me with various aspects of software development life cycle. However, my goal was to pursue a Masters degree in the field of Computer Science from renowned institutes like IIT. This led me to National Center for Software Technology (NCST), an education and research institute of Government of India.

At NCST, I worked in the networking department and simultaneously enrolled in its part time software technology course. This course was vital in teaching me fundamental principles of computer science. Each course module required completion of a challenging project. Whether it was implementation of virtual memory management and multiprogramming in NACHOS, a simpler form of TCP/IP based network simulator or C interpreter, each project effectively helped me gain deeper understanding of the subject. As NCST’s employee, I worked on research projects like implementing Java virtual machine (JVM) and understanding MPLS, a protocol that facilitates label based switching. Overall, my work at NCST served as first step towards my goal of pursuing a Masters degree from IIT.

Backed by excellent performance in Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE: CS) and Information Technology (IT) department’s tests and interviews, I secured admission to the School of IT at IIT Bombay with full tuition waiver and assistantship. The admission was not without its problems though. While joining NCST to pursue my dream, I had taken an immature decision of absconding from TIL. However, I had courage to admit my mistake during the interview with Prof. D. B. Phatak, then head of the school. He discussed the issue with TIL management and the matter was resolved amicably. This episode taught me importance of being honest and taking responsibility for my actions.

True to its reputation, the school provided me with the invigorating academic atmosphere that fostered independent research. It also fuelled my personal growth by letting me manage events like the wireless workshop and few courses that tested my teaching skills as well. During the first semester, I presented a seminar on Java Card Virtual Machine (JCVM). It was based on my investigation of JCVM architecture, how it relates to JVM, its use in smart cards and the security implications. After my undergraduate work, it was this seminar that aroused my interest in embedded systems again. The embedded systems course in second semester gave me hands-on experience on developments like Esteral, a language for reactive systems and Handel-C, a language designed to enable the compilation of programs into synchronous hardware. As part of this course, lectures given by Prof. Krithi Ramamritham on real time operating systems helped me appreciate various design issues in real time systems.

My M.Tech project gave me an opportunity to work in distributed systems area under Prof. R. K. Joshi. It involved implementing the ‘Filter object framework’ in MICO, an open source CORBA implementation. The framework enabled dynamic evolution of distributed object oriented systems i.e. it allowed functionality addition at runtime without requiring system shutdown or recompilation. The project required overcoming many hurdles. First one was to understand the design of MICO. With almost no documentation available on the topic, we had to reverse engineer the static design by studying MICO’s code and the dynamic behavior by using a debugger. Next, as the framework required transparent interception and redirection of distributed call, we had to come up with few designs to modify MICO kernel. After choosing a design alternative that satisfied all requirements, we hit a major roadblock during its implementation. The problem was related to handling of custom marshaling and unmarshaling of user defined data types during call interception and redirection. After many frustrating and sleepless nights, like most solutions to hard problems, we found a simple and elegant solution. With this last hurdle gone, we were able to successfully demonstrate framework’s usefulness in real life systems. This project, with its significant complexity, truly tested my perseverance and patience.

After graduation, I aimed at working for Microsoft (MS) mainly to gain first hand experience of working at this amazing organization and to grow professionally. I joined MS last year after working at Persistent Systems on product targeted at Pharmaceutical industry. Currently I am working on Microsoft’s remote access solution. As matter of interest, I am also investigating RFID work happening at MS India and other developments in embedded systems area. My experience in Microsoft’s vibrant, open and yet highly competitive work culture has been most fulfilling.

During M.Tech, my project guide suggested that I should apply for a doctoral degree. After pondering over it for a month, I decided against it simply because I was not sure. However, over the years I have come to realize that researching a topic of interest and applying that knowledge practically are the two things that I enjoy most. With this realization, I have set myself a new goal: to carry out advanced research in embedded systems area and to use that knowledge to build a successful business.

From a boy without direction to a man with definite focus, I have come a long way. During this journey, it was not just my hard work but influences of people around me also contributed towards my growth. I therefore file this application with the knowledge that I am applying to one of the best places and more importantly, that I will be among the best people while pursuing my doctoral degree. I am confident that research in embedded systems area at <> will serve as foundation for attaining my goal. With a strong conviction in my knowledge and ability, I hope to not only become a part of your exciting academic environment but also make a significant contribution at the Department of <> of the <>.