From 5 to 7 October 2026, researchers from India and Germany gathered in Chennai for the Indo-German Early-Career Scientist Workshop on Chip Design. The event was jointly organised by the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation), with academic support from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras(externer Link). Hosted at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST)(externer Link), the workshop brought together early-career researchers from both countries to exchange scientific perspectives. The scientific programme was developed by Prof. Dr.-Ing Holger Blume(externer Link) from Leibniz University Hannover and Prof. Shanthi Pavan(externer Link) from IIT Madras, who served as the scientific conveners.

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The opening session brought together representatives of the participating institutions, including Dr. Debashis Mitra, Vice-President of INSA, Dr. Brajesh Pandey, Executive Director of INSA, Dr. Franziska Langer, Director of the DFG Office India, and Prof. Shanthi Pavan from IIT Madras. Prof. Muthamizhchelvan Chellamuthu, Vice-Chancellor of SRMIST, addressed the participants as Chief Guest. 

Over three days, 28 scientific presentations addressed current research and developments in microelectronics and chip design. Topics included application-specific processors and RISC-V architectures, analogue and radio-frequency circuits, energy-efficient microelectronics, artificial intelligence and hardware design, semiconductor technologies, biomedical applications and electronic design automation. The broad scientific programme enabled researchers working on different aspects of chip design to exchange expertise, identify common research interests and discuss possible areas of cooperation. By bringing together researchers from both countries at an early stage of their academic careers, the workshop provided an opportunity to establish scientific contacts that may form the basis for future joint research initiatives.

Prof. Dr.-Ing Blume, Leibniz University Hannover, and Prof. Dr.-Ing Norbert Wehn from RPTU University Kaiserslautern-Landau, who also contributed to the scientific programme, are members of the Spokesperson Committee of the Chipdesign Germany(externer Link) network.

Alongside the scientific sessions at SRMIST, participants visited IIT Madras to learn more about its historical connections with Germany, research infrastructure and ongoing activities. The visit was followed by a networking dinner with faculty members from IIT Madras, providing further opportunities for informal scientific exchange. Michael Hasper from the German Consulate General in Chennai also joined the gathering and mentioned the current investments from both governments in the semiconductor field, making this meeting a perfect opportunity to bridge both countries at the perfect time.

The workshop concluded with a session dedicated to future Indo-German research collaboration. Dr. Ina Strauß, DFG Programme Officer for Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, and Dr. Franziska Langer presented DFG funding opportunities for international research collaboration and discussed possible next steps with the participants. 

Further Information

Booklet of the Workshop(Download)

Post by DFG India about Day 1 | LinkedIn(externer Link)

Post by DFG India about Day 2 | LinkedIn(externer Link)

Post by DFG India about Day 3 | LinkedIn(externer Link)