Dr. Sayan Atta

Postdoctoral Fellow · Chemistry & Biochemistry

Pluth Research Group, University of Oregon

I am a chemist working on reactive sulfur and selenium species and their interactions with biologically active metal centers. Since June 2025, I have been a postdoctoral fellow in Prof. Michael Pluth’s group at the University of Oregon.

I completed my Ph.D. research with Prof. Amit Majumdar at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata. My doctoral work focused on transition metal complexes of polychalcogenides and nitrite, particularly polychalcogenide oxidation and nitrite reduction to nitric oxide.

Before that, I received my M.Sc. in Chemistry from IIT Guwahati (2016–2018), where I worked with Prof. Tharmalingam Punniyamurthy on transition-metal-mediated organic synthesis. I received my B.Sc. in Chemistry from Vidyasagar University in 2016.

Education

2024

Ph.D. in Chemistry

Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata

Supervisor: Prof. Amit Majumdar

Thesis: Transition Metal Complexes of Polychalcogenides and Nitrite: Oxidation of Polychalcogenides and Reduction of Nitrite.

2016–2018

M.Sc. in Chemistry

Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati

Research supervisor: Prof. Tharmalingam Punniyamurthy

2013–2016

B.Sc. in Chemistry

Vidyasagar University, West Bengal

First Class

Research

Reactive sulfur and selenium species

My current research examines reactive sulfur species (RSS), reactive selenium species (RSeS), and their chemistry with biologically active metal centers. This includes the chemistry of persulfides and related chalcogen species.

Metal complexes and nitric oxide

I investigate the synthesis and reactivity of transition metal complexes containing thiolate, selenolate, polysulfide, and polyselenide ligands. My work also explores nitrite reduction to nitric oxide, including functional nonheme diiron models relevant to the protein YtfE.

Experimental methods

I use air-free synthesis, single-crystal X-ray diffraction, multinuclear NMR, UV–Vis, FTIR, EPR, mass spectrometry, and electrochemistry to characterize complexes and examine their reactions. Earlier work includes C–H functionalization and electrochemical CO2 reduction.

Publications

Google Scholar

Research experience

June 2025–
present

Postdoctoral Fellow

University of Oregon · Prof. Michael Pluth

Reactive sulfur and selenium species and their interactions with biologically active metal centers.

Aug. 2019–
May 2025

Doctoral & postdoctoral research at IACS

IACS, Kolkata · Prof. Amit Majumdar

  • Research Associate (RA-1) · Dec. 2024–May 2025
  • Senior Research Fellow (SRF) · Aug. 2021–Nov. 2024
  • Junior Research Fellow (JRF) · Aug. 2019–July 2021

Fe, Co, Ni, and Zn polychalcogenide complexes; nitrite-to-NO chemistry and YtfE models; spectroscopic, electrochemical, and crystallographic characterization.

Jan. 2018–
April 2019

Research at IIT Guwahati

Department of Chemistry · Prof. Tharmalingam Punniyamurthy

  • JRF (GATE), Project Staff · July 2018–April 2019
  • M.Sc. research project · Jan.–June 2018

Synthesis of 1-(pyrimidin-2-yl)indolines for directing-group-assisted, site-selective C-7 functionalization.

Mentoring & teaching

My mentoring experience includes graduate research, year-long projects, M.Sc. projects, and a graduate rotation at the University of Oregon.

  • Graduate student mentoringIACS · 2022–2025
  • Project student mentoringIntegrated Ph.D. and M.Sc. projects at IACS and the University of Calcutta · 2019–2023
  • Rotation student mentoringUniversity of Oregon · January–March 2026

Single-crystal X-ray diffraction training

IACS · 2021–2025

As a student representative for single-crystal XRD, I taught crystallographic data collection and structure refinement to graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. My crystallography experience includes work with a Bruker D8 VENTURE Microfocus instrument and more than 40 published molecular structures.

GC–MS training

IACS · 2024–2025

I taught GC–MS methods to graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. My gas chromatography experience includes GC–MS, thermal conductivity detection (TCD), and flame ionization detection (FID), using a Thermo Fisher Trace 1300 for liquid samples and headspace gas mixtures.

Contact

Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
University of Oregon
Eugene, Oregon, USA

sayan@uoregon.edu

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