6 Early Stage Researcher positions in H2020 ETN project MEFISTA - Multi-scale fibre-based optical frequency combs: science, technology and applications
This job offer has expired
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ORGANISATION/COMPANYAston University
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RESEARCH FIELDEngineering › Communication engineeringPhysics › OpticsTechnology › Communication technology
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RESEARCHER PROFILEFirst Stage Researcher (R1)
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APPLICATION DEADLINE30/06/2020 23:00 - Europe/London
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LOCATIONMultiple locations, see work locations below.
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TYPE OF CONTRACTTemporary
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JOB STATUSFull-time
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HOURS PER WEEK40
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EU RESEARCH FRAMEWORK PROGRAMMEH2020 / Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
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MARIE CURIE GRANT AGREEMENT NUMBER861152
OFFER DESCRIPTION
The European Training Network MEFISTA – Multi-scale fibre-based optical frequency combs: science, technology and applications - announces 6 positions for Early-Stage Researchers with the option of being awarded a doctoral degree. MEFISTA ESRs will acquire unique knowledge and research skills on optical frequency comb (OFC) technology from the theory to implementation: development of novel mode-lockingg techniques and speciality fibres and waveguides for mode-locked lasers (MLLs), mid-infrared (mid-IR) tunable dual combs sources for molecular fingerprinting, design and characterisation of dual-comb MLLs, and MLLs manufacturing.Positions will be available at Aston University (Birmingham, UK); Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (Barcelona, Spain); Universite de Lille (Lille, France); Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (Lausanne, Switzerland); Richmond Design & Marketing Limited (Coventry, UK); NKT Photonics A/S (Birkerod, Denmark).
MEFISTA Partner Organisations are: Technical University od Denmark (Denmark), Nexeya (France) and Alpha RLH (France).
Summary
MEFISTA is a doctoral-level training network funded by the European Commission under Horizon2020 Marie Sklodowska-Curie ITN Action. MEFISTA will provide a world-class advanced training programme to 6 early-stage researchers (ESRs) to the level of the next generation of leaders in the fields MLLs-based OFCs technologies, by exploiting challenging interaction between academy (Aston, UPC, ULille, EPFL and DTU) and industry (NKT and RDM).
MEFISTA ESRs will acquire the scientific and technical skills to push OCF technologies into wider technological use for autonomous driving systems.
Project description
The key photonic technology that enables a cluster of applications and so is a driving force for an expanding photonics market in the context of addressing the global challenges is an optical frequency comb (OFC) technology based on mode-locked femtosecond lasers (MLFLs). To respond to the huge demand for qualified experts on OFC technologies, MEFISTA will deliver research and training collaborations that will help ESRs to acquire unique knowledge and research skills on OFC technology from the theory to implementation: development of novel mode-locking techniques and speciality fibres and waveguides for MLFLs, mid-infrared (mid-IR) tunable dual combs sources for molecular fingerprinting, design and characterisation of dual-comb MLFLs, and MLFLs manufacturing. A special focus will be the industrial applications related to development and trial tests of MLFLs in the context of autonomous driving (car-object distance ranging, object recognition, moving objects speed tracing: Doppler LIDAR). The requirement of a new generation of LIDAR with object recognition ability is driven by the demand of high safety standards that autonomous driving vehicles will have to satisfy to guarantee an efficient service to society, by minimising the risk of accidents, especially in harsh and unpredictable environments.
The Training Programme (TP) will be implemented through the unique combination of the “hands-on” research training, non-academic placements and advanced inter/multidisciplinary/ inter-sectoral training on nonlinear science, laser physics, fibre optics, and autonomous driving technologies and transferable skills including Research Integrity, Gender Dimension in Research, and Open Science. The TP will also be supported by synergistic merging the expertise of 4 academic, two non-academic beneficiaries and 1 academic partner from 5 countries.
The positions are for 36 months and expected to begin in early spring 2020 (subject to negotiation).
The ETN MEFISTA programme offers 6 Individual Research Projects:
List of open positions
- ESR1 Project
Title: New physical concepts for dual-frequency comb generation in passive fibre cavities
Host institution and PhD enrolment: Universite de Lille (Lille, France) https://www.univ-lille.fr/
Main supervisor: Prof. A. Mussot Arnaud arnaud.mussot@univ-lille.fr
Secondments: 3 months at Aston, 3 months at RDM
- ESR2 Project
Title: Novel mode-locking techniques based on unconventional (non-Hermitian) fibre structuring
Host institution and PhD enrolment: Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (Barcelona, Spain) www.upc.edu/ca
Main supervisor: Prof. K. Staliunas Kestutis kestutis.staliunas@icrea.cat
Secondments: 3 months at NKT, 3 months at Aston
- ESR3 Project
Title: Design and experimental characterisation of comb sources in the short-wave infrared
Host institution and PhD enrolment: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (Lausanne, Switzerland) https://www.epfl.ch/en/
Main supervisor: Prof. C. S. Brès camille.bres@epfl.ch
Secondments: 3 months at Ulille, 3 Months at RDM
- ESR4 Project
Title: Design, theoretical and experimental characterisation of ellipsometric LIDAR (ELIDAR)
Host institution and PhD enrolment: Aston University www.aston.ac.uk
Main supervisor: Assoc Prof. Sergey Sergeyev s.sergeyev@aston.ac.uk
Secondments: 3 months at NKT, 3 months at RDM
- ESR5 Project
Title: Distance ranging and target recognition in harsh weather conditions based Ellipsometric LIDAR (ELIDAR)
Host institution: Richmond Design & Marketing Limited (Coventry, UK) http://rdmgroup.co.uk/
PhD enrolment: Aston University www.aston.ac.uk
Main supervisor: Prof. D. M. Keene dkeene@rdmgroup.co.uk
Secondments: 3 months at Aston, 3 months at EPFL
- ESR6 Project
Title: Fibre coupled microresonator frequency comb mode-locking and stabilisation
Host institution: NKT Photonics A/S (Birkerod, Denmark) https://www.nktphotonics.com/
PhD enrolment: Technical University of Denmark https://www.dtu.dk/
Main supervisor: Prof. P. M. Moselund pmm@nktphotonics.com
Secondments: 3 months at UPC, 3 months at EPFL
More Information
Benefits
- Salary:
The successful candidates will be employed on a full-time basis with a competitive salary in accordance with the MSCA rules and the personal circumstances of the applicant. The successful candidate will receive a financial package consisting of MSCA living allowance and mobility allowance. Eligible applicants with a family will also receive an additional family allowance according to the rules of the MSCA. The exact (net) salary will be confirmed upon appointment and will depend on a Host Institution's local tax regulations.
MEFISTA Consortium partners will also advertise the ESR positions individually on their institutional websites, national portals, as well as on the EURAXESS platform. These local/individual advertisements will have further details regarding the scientific investigations and salaries.
- Family-friendly working conditions
Female applicants and applicants wishing to return to research after a period of absence are especially encouraged to apply. Local adverts will detail family-friendly working conditions such as child care facilities if available.
- Training
In addition to their individual scientific projects, MEFISTA ESRs will be collaborating with world-leading research groups within the Consortium through secondments. All ESRs will benefit from extensive and varied further continuing education, completing a series of carefully designed training modules and transferable skills courses; they will participate in symposia, workshops and international conferences and will have meaningful exposure to the industrial environment through MEFISTA industrial partners.
Eligibility criteria
- MSCA Eligibility
Applicants must at the first day of their MEFISTA employment contract, be in the first four years (full-time equivalent research experience) of their research career and have not been awarded a doctoral degree. This research experience is measured FROM the date when they obtain the degree which formally entitles them to embark on a doctorate (either in the country in which the degree was obtained or in the country in which the researcher is recruited, even if a doctorate was never started or envisaged). Research Experience is measured TO the first day of the MEFISTAvemployment contract of the researcher.
- MSCA Mobility
At the core of the MSCA-ITNs is researcher mobility. At the time of commencing their employment, researchers must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of their (recruiting) host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to their recruitment. Short stays, such as holidays, are not taken into account.
Usual MSCA Eligibility Criteria apply and will be verified during the application process. For further information on MSCA, please see: http://ec.europa.eu/mariecurieactions.
Selection process
- General guidance for applicants: The ESR positions will also be advertised locally at the respective institutions and local recruitment sites. These local/individual advertisements will have further details including local PhD admission criteria and application deadlines.
- To apply, initially please send your CV, a cover letter and supporting documents by email (using the subject header "ETN MEFISTA Application") to the main supervisor for the position that you wish to apply for. Please see the descriptions of each ESR projects listed above.
Additional comments
Offer Requirements
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REQUIRED LANGUAGESENGLISH: Excellent
Skills/Qualifications
- ETN MEFISTA is looking for the candidates with a strong academic background and exceptional grades, who have been awarded, or expect to get before the project start, a Master of Science degree in Electrical/Optical Engineering, Physics, or equivalent.
- In exceptional cases, outstanding candidates with a BSc in an appropriate discipline will also be considered at Aston University
- Please provide transcripts of the marks you have already achieved with your application.
- English Language: ESRs must demonstrate that their ability to understand and express themselves in both written and spoken English is sufficient for them to derive the full benefits of the network training. Formal English language requirements will vary according to the university at which the ESR is enrolled for a PhD. Please see the local/individual advertisements for the exact requirements applicable or contact your intended host for further information.
- Applicants must comply with the usual MSCA eligibility and mobility rules.
- All applicants MUST be within their first 4 years of research experience.
EURAXESS offer ID: 489205
Disclaimer:
The responsibility for the jobs published on this website, including the job description, lies entirely with the publishing institutions. The application is handled uniquely by the employer, who is also fully responsible for the recruitment and selection processes.
Please contact support@euraxess.org if you wish to download all jobs in XML.
MEFISTA is explicitly committed to the principle of equal opportunities. For further information, please contact Dr Martina Pasini m.pasini@aston.ac.uk.
For specific questions concerning the content of the research please contact Assoc. Prof Sergey Sergeyev s.sergeyev@aston.ac.uk or the main supervisors of each ESR project.
PhD tuition fee:
The MEFISTA Fellowship includes a bursary to cover PhD tuition fees. Specific bursary conditions will be advertised locally.
Acknowledgement
This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 861152.