Announcement for Research Scholarship Awarding within the Framework of R&D Projects Financed by National Funds through the FCT/MCTES. Research Grant (BI) (1 Place) Project Reference: BI_2023_7_FCT2022.03897.PTDC

Call for tenders is open for the attribution of 1 Research Grant (BI) within the scope of the R&D institution Centro de Investigação em Tecnologias - Autónoma TechLab, of the Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa (UAL), project with the reference BI_2023_7_FCT2022.03897.PTDC with financial support from the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education (MCTES), through national funds (PIDDAC).

Generic scientific area: Engineering

Specific scientific area: Electronics and Informatics Engineering

Mandatory admission requirements: a) to be enrolled in a Ph.D. study program; b) not exceed, with the conclusion of the scholarship contract in question, including possible renewals, an accumulated period of one year of having this type of scholarship, continuous or intermittent; c) not have already been the beneficiary of any other research grant directly or indirectly financed by FCT.

Eligibility of candidates: candidates must meet the eligibility conditions set out in article 9º of the FCT I.P. Research Grant Regulation.

Preferred Factors: carry out the research program as described in the work plan; knowledge of wireless communications; knowledge in mathematical optimization; fluency in writing in English; previous research experience.

Work plan: Literature review on UAV-assisted networks, virtualization technologies and service provisioning in dynamic environments; identification of existing research gaps and the main challenges in this field; collection and analysis of data relating to UAV-assisted networks, including information on UAV characteristics, virtualization technologies and battery capacities; analyze collected data to understand the current state of service provision on these networks and identify areas where improvements are needed; investigate innovative approaches and strategies to optimize service delivery in UAV-assisted networks, consider how virtualization technologies can be leveraged to improve connectivity and service delivery; experimental design: design experiments to explore the relationship between hover time, serviceability, and energy efficiency in UAVs. Presentation and dissemination: prepare presentations and manuscripts to share research results with the scientific community through conferences, journals and workshops.

Objectives to achieve: UAV positioning and trajectory design in mixed ground and air base station networks.

Applicable legislation and regulations: The scholarship is approved by Law n.º 40/2004, of August 18th, in the current wording published by Decree-Law N.º 123/2019, of August 28th of the Statute of the Research Fellow (EBI), (available at https://diariodarepublica.pt/dr/legislacao-consolidada/lei/2004-58216179), and Regulation of Research Grants, N.º. 950/2019, of December 16, from the Foundation for Science and Technology, I.P. (https://files.dre.pt/2s/2019/12/241000000/0009100105.pdf) and amendments to Regulation No. 950/2019, of December 16, 2019 (available at https://former.fct.pt/apoios/veraocomciencia/docs/Primeira_Alteracao_Regulamento_Bolsas_Investigacao_FCT.pdf).

Contracting Institution: CEU – University Education Cooperative, CRL

Workplace: The work will be carried out in person at the facilities of the Autónoma TechLab – Centro de Investigação em Tecnologias, of the Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa, Rua de Santa Marta, 47, 6th, 1150-293 Lisbon, under the scientific supervision of Professor Dushantha Nalin K. Jayakody.

Scholarship duration: The grant has duration of 7 months, scheduled to start on November 20, 2023. A reserve selection list will be created, which can be used for a maximum of 3 months.

Monthly maintenance allowance amount: The scholarship amount corresponds to a €1.199,64 according to the table of values of scholarships awarded directly by FCT, (https://www.fct.pt/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Tabela-de-Valores-SMM_2023.pdf), and according to the contract draft. The scholarship will be paid monthly by bank transfer, by the contracting entity.

Exclusive regime: The grantee's duties are carried out on an exclusive basis, under the terms set out in article 5 of the Research Fellow's Statute and the Research Grant Regulations, currently in force.

The selection methods to be used will be the following: Only three candidates who meet the admission requirements will be considered for interview. The candidate selection methods are as follows: evaluation of the Curriculum Vitae (70%); interview (20%) and motivation letter (10%). Only candidates with a weighted average equal to or greater than 15 will be admitted.

The Selection Jury composition: President: Professor Dushantha Nalin K. Jayakody, Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa. Vogal: Professor Gonçalo Valadão, Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa; Vogal: Professor Tharindu Ponnimbaduge Perera, University of Melbourne. Vogal suplent: Professor Mário Marques da Silva, Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa.

Form of announcement/notification of results: The candidates selected and admitted for an interview are invited by email. The Public Notice and the final evaluation results will be published, through a list ordered by the final grade obtained, in a public place on the websites of Autónoma TechLab ( https://techlab.autonoma.pt) and of Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa (https://autonoma.pt/category/artigos/bolsas-de-investigacao/), and the approved candidate will be notified by email. All applicants will be notified of the decision by email.

Application deadline and form of submission of applications: The tender is open from November 2, 2023 until November 15, 2023. Applications must be formalized by sending the following documents in digital format (PDF format): updated Curriculum Vitae; Certificate of Qualifications, Letter of Motivation, and other documents considered relevant, which certify what is described in the CV. Applications must be submittedby emailto gaid@autonoma.pt including in the subject field: BI_2023_7_FCT2022.03897.PTDC.

Failure to send any of the documents required in the application is grounds for exclusion (in accordance with the provisions of Article 10 of FCT Research Grants Regulation No. 950/2019).

Complaint and appeal deadline: After the final decision and notification to the candidates, they have a period of 15 working days to make a statement to the President of the Jury, or appeal to the highest executive body of the financing entity within 30 working days.

Final report: The scholarship holder must submit, within 60 working days after the end of the scholarship, a final report of the activities, in digital format (PDF). This report must describe in detail all the activities carried out, the period of time spent on them, the objectives achieved and the respective URL addresses (if applicable).

Number of vacancies: 1

Type of contract: Information not available

Country: Portugal

Location: Lisbon

Host institution: Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa

Application deadline: 15 November, 2023

Organization contact details:

Universidade autónoma de Lisboa

Rua de Santa Marta, 47, 6º

1150-293, Lisbon,

Email: gaid@autonoma.pt

Website: https://autonoma.pt/