Hollow Core Fibres for Mid-infrared Gas Sensing, Quantum Optics & Metrology

This project focusses on exploiting novel hollow core fibres to make new mid-infrared devices. The mid-infrared spectral region represents a rapidly growing research area which is especially interesting for gas-light interactions as the strongest absorption features of many gas species lie in this region. Hollow core fibres are an excellent host for gas-light interactions and are also well-suited to operating at wavelengths where conventional solid fibres made from silica glass cannot transmit light, such as the mid-IR. Hollow core fibres are therefore excellent candidates for the next generation of mid-IR devices such as novel light sources, ultra-high sensitivity gas sensors and compact frequency references.

This PhD project is primarily experimental and the successful student will work with experienced researchers, within extensive and well equipped labs and will engage with our industrial partners to achieve high impact outcomes from their work. The project is supported by generous funding from the EPSRC and the Royal Society.

A fully funded PhD position is available for UK applicants (with an enhanced stipend of £18,000 tax-free per annum for up to 3.5 years.) EU students with no external funding can contend for a small number of competitive scholarships. Students from overseas who have secured some external funding are also encouraged to apply. www.orc.southampton.ac.uk/phd_funding.html

To discuss project details/ arrange a visit, please contact Professor Francesco Poletti ([Email Address Removed]) and Dr. Natalie Wheeler ([Email Address Removed]).

The PhD programme

The Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) PhD comprises a solid education for a research career. The structured first year involves attending our training programme running in parallel with carrying out your research project. This provides a smooth transition from your degree course towards the more open-ended research that takes place in the following years under the guidance of your project supervisors. We expect the vast majority of our students to present their work at international conferences and to write papers in leading academic journals as their research progresses. Students will emerge from the PhD with skills at the forefront of future fiber laser research and will benefit from the many opportunities to interact with the wider community of PhD students across the Southampton Campus through academic, sporting and cultural events.

The ORC is the leading photonics research institute in the UK and possibly in Europe. It comprises state-of-the-art cleanrooms for optical fibre, planar photonics, silicon and bio-photonics fabrication and over 80 laboratories. Computer simulations will benefit from Southampton’s high performance computing cluster Iridis, one of the largest supercomputers in the UK. A PhD at the ORC has enabled our past graduates to make successful careers in academia, in national scientific laboratories, and as scientists or business leaders in industry. Our research papers, patents, spin-off companies and these successful alumni taken together place Southampton amongst the top institutes worldwide.

Key facts

Entry requirements: first or upper second-class degree or equivalent

Closing date: applications should be received no later than 31 August 2019 for standard admissions, but later applications may be considered depending on the funds remaining in place.

Duration: typically three years (full-time)

Assessment: nine-and 18-month reports and viva voce determine progression to PhD; progression reports, viva voce and thesis examination

Start date: typically September

Applying: www.southampton.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgstudy/howdoiapplypg.html