Assoc. Prof Anupam SENGUPTA

Prof. Dr. Anupam Sengupta joined the University of Luxembourg in May 2018 as a prestigious ATTRACT Fellow, supported by the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR Luxembourg). He heads the Physics of Living Matter Group, an international cross-disciplinary team working at the interface of Physics, Biology, Mathematics and Engineering sciences.

Since joining, Prof. Dr. Sengupta has served multiple academic and administrative positions including as the Academic Programme Director for Undergraduate Physics (2021-2025) and Member of the Scientific Council of the Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS, since 2024) of the University of Luxembourg. In addition, he is one of the Sustainability Ambassadors of the UL. Currently, he co-leads the European Cost Action (EuroCurvoBioNet) and serves as the General Secretary of the Luxembourgish Physical Society (APHYL a.s.b.l.).

For further details, please visit:

LinkedIn profile / Anupam Sengupta

ORCID profile / Anupam Sengupta

The Physics of Living Matter Group looks at LIFE, or as we put it, Living In Fluctuating Environments. LIFE bridges the physics of flow (matter & information) and form (geometry, order & topology) to uncover biological functions (behaviour & response) in diverse microbial systems and interfaces. 

We use cross-disciplinary approaches which interface tools and techniques from physics, biology, engineering, mathematics, statistics and machine learning to capture microbial behaviour, response and resilience triggered by environmental variations mimicking those due to shifts in climate and lifestyle choices.

A particular focus of the Sengupta Lab lies in valorizing research results into innovative bio-based solutions for a sustainable carbon-neutral future.

For further details, please visit:

Research homepage

TEDx University of Luxembourg

Following a brief stint in industry after graduating from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (India), Prof. Dr. Sengupta joined the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Göttingen (Germany), as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Fellow in 2009. After a short postdoc stay in Göttingen, Anupam moved to USA in 2014 as a Human Frontiers Cross-Disciplinary Fellow to work on the physical ecology of marine microorganisms. Since Fall 2015, he was based at the Institute of Environmental Engineering, at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) in Switzerland.

Prof. Dr. Sengupta joined the University of Luxembourg as an FNR-ATTRACT Fellow in 2018, setting up the Physics of Living Matter Group and kickstarting cross-disciplinary research in biological physics. For more information on his journey, please visit:  

ATTRACT Fellow: People behind the science

FNR Luxembourg

Prof. Dr. Anupam Sengupta holds a Dual Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (India), with specialization in Thermal and Fluids Engineering. After a short stint in industry, he joined the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Göttingen (Germany), where in 2013, he received a Ph.D. with summa cum laude in condensed matter physics for his work on liquid crystal microfluidics. His doctoral thesis received multiple international recognitions including the Glenn H Brown Award of the International Liquid Crystal Society, the Springer Thesis Award and the Berliner-Ungewitter Prize.

Between 2014 and 2017, Anupam was a Human Frontier Cross-Disciplinary Fellow, first at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT,USA) and then at the ETH Zurich (Switzerland), working on a range of problems on the physical ecology of microorganisms. As an enthusiastic educator, Anupam holds 2 diplomas on Educational Methods and Technologies from MIT, USA; and multiple certifications, including Leadership & Management in Educational Establishments, Artificial Intelligence in Entrepreneurship and Business, and Spin-off Exploration from the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

Teaching Assignments

University of Luxembourg, 2019 onward

Physics of Living Matter (for Masters and PhD students), every Winter Semesters since 2019 (ongoing)

Introduction to Biological Physics (for Bachelor students), every Winter Semesters since 2021 (ongoing)

Literature Seminar in Bachelor in Physics, Summer Semesters since 2019 (ongoing)

Quantitative Image Analysis (for Master in Physics students), Summer Semester since 2020 (ongoing)

Quantifying Interactions and Forces in Cellular Environments, Modular Course for PhD students at U. Luxembourg, 2025 (ongoing)

Formal Training in Educational Management, Methods and Technologies, 2014- Present

Leadership and Management in Educational Establishments, Erasmus Plus, 2024

Teaching With Educational Technology, Office of Digital Learning, MIT (Cambridge, USA), 2015

Teaching Certificate Program, Teaching and Learning Laboratory, MIT (Cambridge, USA), 2014

Scientific and educational outreach

University of Luxembourg, 2018 onward

March, 2025: Hosting Luxembourgish Physics Olympiad finalists for tour of the Sengupta Labs 

March, 2025: Panel member, 42nd Festival Migrations, Cultures & Citoyenneté, Luxembourg, on the “Role of immigrant researchers on Luxembourg’s economic development”

May, 2024: Academia Stands for the Green Deal in Nancy, France. 

February, 2023: Research at the interface of Physics, Biology and Engineering Sciences: Department of Biotechnology (DBT, Govt. of India), the Human Frontiers Science Program Organization (HFSPO) 

June, 2022: Cover story on Sengupta Lab in the magazine TÉLÉCRAN, titled Winziger Weltretter (The Miniscule Recuer).  

2019 – Present: Annual field trip and research workshop at the Lago di Cadagno, Canton Tessin (CH), in collaboration with SUPSI Switzerland

2019 – Present: High school student internships at the Physics of Living Matter Group

2019 – Present: Luxembourg Open Lab Day, Luxembourg; Open Day of the University of Luxembourg

October, 2020: Speaker: TED^x University of Luxembourg

May, 2019: L’Institut de formation de l’Education nationale Luxembourg: Physics beyond Physics: Microbes in a changing climate

December, 2018: Science Cafe, Researchers’ Days Luxembourg: Life of a Bug: The tiny marvels in a changing world

For further details, please click here.

22) Promotion with tenure as Associate Professor, University of Luxembourg, 11/2022

21) Young Leader at the 19^th Annual Meeting of the Science, Technology and Society Forum, Kyoto, Japan 10/2022

20) Winner of the FNR-Scientific Image Competition, Fonds National de la Recherche, Luxembourg, 2022

19) AUDACITY Grantee and Member of the Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Luxembourg, 2020

18) Selected as Early Career Star In Liquid Crystals of the Decade (2010-2020), Crystals Ed. Team, 2020

17) ATTRACT Starting Investigator Grant, Fonds National de la Recherche, Luxembourg, 07/2017

16) Young Scientists and the Future: Documentaries by NATURE (Science from the ivory tower) 09/2015

15) 65^th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting dedicated to Interdisciplinary Sciences, Lindau, Germany, 07/2015 (upon nomination by the International Human Frontier Science Program Organization)

14) Invited Young Scientist: Discover Research in Baden Württemberg, BW-i, Germany, 07/2015

13) Glenn H. Brown Prize, International Liquid Crystal Society, 2014

12) Cross-Disciplinary Fellowship, Human Frontiers in Science Program, 2014 – 2017

11) DFG Research Fellowship, German Science Foundation, 2014 – 2016 (gratefully declined/retracted)

10) Global Young Scientists Summit, National Research Foundation Singapore, 2014 (gratefully declined due to time constraints)

9) Berliner-Ungewitter Prize, University of Göttingen, 2013

8) Springer Thesis Award for outstanding doctoral thesis, 2013

7) Outstanding doctoral research award, Convocation of the University of Göttingen, 2013

6) Summa cum laude for PhD thesis, Faculty of Physics, University of Göttingen, 12/2012

5) ITN ‘HIERARCHY’ Fellowship, Marie Skłodowska-Curie, 2009 – 2012

4) Invited internship to FMP Technologies GmbH, Erlangen, Germany, 05/2007 – 07/2007

3) Merit-cum-Means scholarship, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, 2003 – 2007

2) Certificate of Excellence in community service, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, 2006 and 2007

1) Amiable Leadership Award of the class of 1999, Ramakrishna Mission Vidyapith, Deoghar, 1999