Subhash Mahajan
Oct. 4, 1939-Aug. 17, 2023
Pleasanton, California

On August 17, 2024, we mourn the loss of our father Subhash Mahajan, PhD, Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Davis, who passed away one year ago. Dr. Mahajan was born in 1939 in Gurdaspur in the Punjab province of British India. He attended Punjab College and the Indian Institute of Science, majoring in Materials Science. He then completed his PhD at the University of California (Berkeley), where he met and married Sushma Mahajan (nee Sondhi). After Berkeley, the couple moved to Denver and then the United Kingdom, where he worked for the Atomic Energy Research Agency at Harwell. The family grew: two sons were born in the UK, Sanjoy and Sunit Mahajan. In 1971, a recruitment team from Bell Laboratories enticed Dr. Mahajan to Murray Hill, New Jersey, where he remained for twelve years, working on twinning and perfecting silicon crystals for the rapidly advancing electronics technology. Another son was born, Ashish Mahajan. After Murray Hill, he took a post as Professor of Materials Science at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. There he remained for another fourteen years before departing for Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, where he served as Chair of the Department of Materials Science. In 2010, he and Sushma moved to Davis, California, where he served as Distinguished Professor and Special Adviser to the Chancellor of UC Davis. He was a member of several professional societies during his career, he received countless awards, and he mentored generations of material scientists. Professor Mahajan departed peacefully on August 17, 2023, and we miss him deeply.

Tags: teacher/educator