Surajit Sengupta

Trusted battery technology executive and materials scientist with 25+ years of global experience leading advanced battery innovation, product development, reliability engineering, manufacturing scale-up, supplier qualification, and commercialization. Proven ability to translate customer and market requirements into safe, reliable, manufacturable products spanning lithium-ion, lithium-metal, solid-state, silicon-anode, graphene-enabled, anode-free, high-voltage, and bipolar battery systems. Combines hands-on coin-cell and pouch-cell fabrication in glovebox and dry-room environments with executive leadership of multidisciplinary teams, laboratories, customer programs, and multi-million-dollar R&D initiatives across smartphones, tablets, rugged mobile computers, wearables, robotics, electric vehicles, aerospace, and battery energy storage systems.

Manager, Battery Laboratory & Prototype Research Projects at University of Waterloo, Department of Chemical Engineering (2025-03 – Present)

Program Value: CAD 5M

• Established and commissioned a battery prototyping center with dry-room and glove-box capabilities; sourced equipment and suppliers, reduced equipment and chemical costs by 50%, and built end-to-end workflows from materials preparation through electrochemical validation.
• Lead cross-functional academic, industry, and customer-sponsored projects involving CNT additives, advanced electrolytes, coated current collectors, lithium-ion polymer, solid-state, and high-energy 1–2 Ah pouch cells.
• Provide hands-on training in cell design, slurry formulation, coating, calendaring, die cutting, cup forming, coin-cell and pouch-cell assembly, electrolyte filling, sealing, formation, testing, safety, and data interpretation.
• Develop customer-specific battery prototypes and launch-ready solutions by aligning performance, reliability, manufacturability, cost, and project requirements.

Senior Manager, Solid-State Battery Product Development at C4V / Center of Excellence, Binghamton University (2024-01 – 2025-02)

Program Value: USD 35M

• Led development of lithium-metal, solid-state, and anode-free cells using NMC and LNiFePO4 cathodes; formulated high-ionic-conductivity solid electrolytes and supported transfer to large-scale production at the iM3NY facility.
• Directed cross-functional design-of-experiments to characterize electrolyte interactions with anodes, cathodes, binders, and separators, improving technical understanding, reliability, and scale-up readiness.
• Qualified externally sourced polymer-coated lithium metal and coordinated supplier, process, quality, and product-development activities for pilot-scale deployment.

Senior Research Scientist, Pouch Cell Development & Bipolar Pack Design at Global Graphene Group / Solidion Technology (2022-04 – 2024-12)

Program Value: USD 35M raised following technology transfer

• Commercialized graphene-enabled silicon-anode and hybrid solid-state technologies; supported technology transfer that contributed to approximately USD 35M in funding.
• Implemented mass-scale cell concepts combining hybrid solid-state electrolyte, silicon anode, graphene, and mixed LFP/NMC cathodes; synthesized lithium-rich iron cathode materials for anode-free pouch cells.
• Designed a 13.5 kWh bipolar battery system for residential backup power with targeted volumetric energy density above 700 Wh/L and developed step-charge algorithms to accelerate charging while controlling thermal rise.

Principal Battery Specialist, Validation & Cell Qualification at Zebra Technologies (2016 – 2022)

Program Value: CAD 1M annually; supported USD 40–50M quarterly product programs

• Led cross-functional global qualification of multi-source 4.35 V battery cells for rugged mobile computers, wearables, robotics, and electronic products, integrating engineering, quality, reliability, supplier quality, supply chain, procurement, and product teams.
• Authored battery specifications and design-verification requirements; applied FMEA/FMECA, risk assessment, reliability testing, failure analysis, and supplier qualification to new product features and hardware revisions.
• Introduced step-charge, DCIR, dQ/dV, and accelerated validation methods that reduced qualification testing from 500 to 300 cycles while maintaining safety and reliability objectives.
• Bridged technical gaps among internal teams and Tier-1 suppliers, resolved complex battery issues, and drove compliance with Zebra product and battery specifications.
• Applied statistical analysis and multi-supplier performance data to strengthen sourcing decisions, reduce qualification risk, and support resilient global supply.

Principal Electrical Engineer, Global Battery Sourcing & Validation at BlackBerry (2010-05 – 2016)

Program Value: CAD 5–6M per quarter

• Led global battery sourcing, validation, supplier qualification, and product-development support for smartphones and tablets, balancing performance, safety, reliability, cost, and continuity of supply.
• Supervised startup collaborations and funding for silicon-anode development; translated emerging technologies into product roadmaps, customer requirements, design verification, and launch decisions.
• Contributed to 12 issued and 18 pending patents in mobile energy harvesting and storage; conducted market intelligence, competitive benchmarking, and end-to-end technology assessments.
• Audited supplier manufacturing sites and led cross-functional ramp-up activities with technology owners, design teams, quality, operations, and executive stakeholders.
• Supported new product introductions by connecting battery performance, charger design, hardware revisions, safety, regulatory expectations, and customer use conditions.

Director, EV Battery Pack Design & NMC Cathode Development at Lithium Ion Motor Corporation (2006-04 – 2010-05)

Program Value: USD 5M

• Led cross-functional design and validation of a 35 kWh electric-vehicle battery pack and BMS, including on-road testing for NASA, U.S. Navy, paratransit, EPA, ZeroTruck, GSA, and Transport Canada programs.
• Developed patented sol-gel nano-NMC cathode materials supplied to Kokam Korea and USABC and supported in-house EV demonstrations for government and commercial customers.
• Contributed to the team that won the USD 5M Progressive Automotive X Prize, demonstrating vehicle efficiency, battery performance, and commercial innovation.
• Led customer-facing technical reviews, risk analysis, pack safety decisions, and cross-functional problem solving across cell, module, pack, BMS, vehicle, and supplier interfaces.

Battery Technology & Product Development Leader at Electrovaya Corporation (1999-05 – 2006-05)

Program Value: NASA program: USD 6M