PhD student in Materials Physics

Are you interested in working with experimental physics, with the support of competent and friendly colleagues in an international environment? Are you looking for an employer that invests in sustainable employeeship and offers safe, favorable working conditions? We welcome you to apply for a PhD position in physics at Uppsala University.

The research conducted at the Department of Physics and Astronomy encompasses a wide range of physics topics, distributed over nine divisions. The department is located in the Ångström laboratory and employs nearly 400 people, 100 of whom are doctoral students. It offers a broad physics curriculum to undergraduate and graduate students, participation in nationally and internationally leading projects for researchers, and opportunities for partnership with industry and various outreach activities.

The Materials Physics division within the Department of Physics and Astronomy investigates advanced materials for applications in amongst others fusion energy, smart windows, hydrogen storage & nanoelectronics. As an important part of this research, we also study non-equilibrium conditions in materials, over a wide range of time-scales. More specifically, we also study the strong perturbations induced in materials when interacting with energetic charged particles.  

These experiments improve our fundamental understanding, provide benchmarking data for novel computational approaches and permit to determine concentrations and depth profiles of atoms and molecules in a material with very high accuracy. A 5 MV tandem accelerator, a 350 kV high current ion implanter and a Low-Energy Ion Scattering System together with a number of environments and set-ups for sample synthesis and modification form the experimental platform.

Uppsala University hereby declares a PhD student position, at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, to be open for application. The present PhD-project will be part of a double-degree program with the University of Duisburg-Essen, where part (approximately 50% effective time) of the research will be conducted.

The PhD-project will focus on studies of dynamic processes induced in materials due to interaction with keV light and heavy ions. Processes to be investigated comprise amongst others of energy dissipation, charge transfer, emission of secondary particles, all of which provide evidence of the underlying ultrafast interactions. An improved understanding of this complex many-body physics provides unique benchmarking information for advanced time-dependent computational approaches and is of ultimate relevance for tailored materials modification and analysis using ion beams used from cancer therapy to synthesis of electronic compounds. The work will be of primarily experimental character.

Duties

The project is focused on experimental studies of the interaction of energetic ions with materials.

Specifically, this will include:

• Experiments to measure energy loss and charge state distributions of ions and secondary particles emitted upon ion impact in the interaction with self-supporting target systems.
• Operation and development of Time-of-flight spectrometers and corresponding ion accelerators.
• Preparation of ultrathin, high quality target systems.
• Handling and analysis of complex datasets, evaluation and simulation using Monte-Carlo and Molecular dynamics approaches.

Requirements
To meet the entry requirements for doctoral studies, you must

• hold a Master’s (second-cycle) degree in physics or a closely related natural science discipline, or 
• have completed at least 240 credits in higher education, with at least 60 credits at Master’s level including an independent project worth at least 15 credits, or
• have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way.
• personal capabilities necessary to carry out fully the duties of the appointment.

Appointment as a graduate student requires that the holder is admitted or will be admitted to PhD studies, where the applicant’s ability to successfully complete the doctoral studies will be decisive. The PhD position is for four years. Information about doctoral education, eligibility requirements and admission rules can be found on the web site of the Faculty of Technology  https://www.uu.se/vetenskapsomrade/teknik-och-naturvetenskap/utbildning/utbildning-pa-forskarniva.

Additional qualifications

Documented experience in materials research with ion beams, analysis of complex datasets and with vacuum systems are considered an advantage.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment 100 %. Starting date as agreed. Placement: Uppsala/Duisburg Essen.

For further information about the position, please contact: Daniel Primetzhofer, daniel.primetzhofer@physics.uu.se.

Please submit your application by 5 december 2024 , UFV-PA 2024/3978.

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