4 PhD Positions, Adolphe Merkle Institute, Switzerland (2019)

The Adolphe Merkle Institute (AMI) at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland invites applications for 4 PhD positions in the Soft Matter Physics group of Prof. Ullrich Steiner.

The goal of the ERC funded project “Photonic Structural Materials with Controlled Disorder” is the discovery how structural color arises from materials with various degrees of disorder. The projects encompass the following four domains:

- Tomographic analysis of disordered materials occurring in nature (e.g. bird feathers), the discovery of structural correlations in these materials and linking them with their optical properties
- The analysis of disordered optical gratings occurring in plants and the development of models describing their optical response
- The manufacture of materials that replicate the properties of the materials described above. This includes the discovery how nature creates these materials
- The development of numerical and analytic methods to describe and model the propagation of light through disordered media

The project includes the investigation of these structures with state-of-the-art tomographic methods, synthetic and self-assembly methodologies to create structured materials and both analytic and simulation methods analyzing structural correlations and the light-matter interaction in disordered materials.

The successful applicant will hold a Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Physics, Materials Science or a related field, preferably with a focus on optics, topology or structure-function interactions. While the projects are mostly experimental, there is also the possibility to carry out a theoretical PhD project on the analytical analysis and numerical simulation of disordered materials and their optical response. The candidate should wish to pursue independent research involving optical characterization techniques, electron microscopy, analytic theories or optical simulations. Excellent communication skills in English (both written and oral) are an essential requirement. PhD positions at AMI provide the opportunity of close collaborations with other groups at AMI, the Faculty of Sciences, within the National Center of Competence in Research “Bio-inspired Materials”, as well was with the University of Cambridge and several US universities.

For more information please visit the following link:
4 PhD Positions, Adolphe Merkle Institute, Switzerland (2019)