PhD in Physics

PhD Studentship in Magnetic Microscopy with Bose-Einstein Condensates (2025)

What you get

• Fully-paid tuition fees for three and a half years.
• A tax-free bursary for living costs for three and a half years (£19,237 per annum in 24/25).
• Additional financial support is provided to cover short-term and long-term
  travel.
• If you are not a UK national, nor an EU national with UK settled/pre-settled
  status, you will need to apply for a student study visa before admission.

Type of award

Postgraduate Research

PhD project

Our Research Group

Our research team studies neutral atomic gases to understand their fundamental properties at the quantum level and their interactions with external fields and materials. We manipulate them and exploit their ultra-high sensitivity to magnetic field to develop cutting edge magnetic sensors. Applications of these quantum sensors range from nanomaterials and novel touchscreens to the monitoring of electric vehicle batteries, navigation, brain imaging and intracellular signalling.

The Project

Neutral atoms can be cooled and trapped using a combination of static and oscillating electro-magnetic fields. We produce Bose-Einstein condensates on atom chips and use them to microscopically probe the magnetic field close to surfaces with very high sensitivity. With our magnetic microscope we can image active current flow patterns in nanostructured samples which is a novel technique in high demand for many studies in materials science and bio-engineering [1].

During this project we will characterise the magnetic microscope, prepare and study samples of nanostructured materials as well as biological samples. Based on such measurements the aim is to further improve the sensitivity of the microscope to electric current in two dimensional (2D) samples. The project involves experimental work on atom chip based ultracold atomic systems, study of atom-surface interactions, imaging of current flow patterns in 2D samples, and the comparison of such measurements to other imaging techniques.

The PhD student will play a central role in this investigation and will learn a wide array of tools in atomic physics, quantum technology (lasers, optics, electronics, vacuum systems, microfabrication), materials and bio-engineering.

Eligibility

Applicants must hold, or expect to hold, at least a UK upper second class degree (or non-UK equivalent qualification) in physics, or else a lower second class degree followed by a relevant Master's degree.

The candidate should have background in atomic and quantum physics.

This award is open to UK and International students. If you are not a UK national, nor an EU national with UK settled/pre-settled status, you will need to apply for a student study visa before admission.

Deadline

19 January 2025 23:45

How to apply

pply online via the University of Sussex portal, http://www.sussex.ac.uk/study/phd/apply

State in the Funding section of the application form that you are applying for EPSRC/2025/01

We advise early application as the position will be filled as soon as a suitable applicant can be found.

Due to the high volume of applications received, you may only hear from us if your application is successful.

Contact us

If you have practical questions about the progress of your on-line application or your eligibility, contact Zara Jones at mps-pgrsupport@sussex.ac.uk

For academic questions about the project, contact Dr Fedja Orucevic (F.Orucevic@sussex.ac.uk) or Dr Julia Fekete (J.Fekete@sussex.ac.uk).

Timetable

We advise early application as the position will be filled as soon as a suitable applicant can be found.