Joining the Group
General note
Students have freedom to work in any of the group's research areas from ultrafast (quantum) dynamics through to nanomaterials synthesis and characterisation. Projects will always be tailored to your research interests and ambitions. Both fully experimental and purely theoretical/computational projects are available (as well as ones involving a bit of both). We build a lot of our custom experiments (and the tools to understand them) in-house, but also collaborate closely with colleagues in Europe and the US. So, if you like to travel there is always room to spend extended periods abroad.
I firmly want students to have lives outside the lab (I am not interested in counting hours, more your enjoyment); am aiming for the most diverse possible set of expertise and backgrounds in the team (be that in race, nationality, gender, physical ability or sexual orientation); am striving for an environment where your mental/physical well-being and ambitions will be fully supported; and want us to work with each other and other groups to make impactful discoveries (regardless of external metrics).
Summer, masters and internship projects
We are happy to host students in our labs (or with our overseas partners) for summer, masters or research internship projects (e.g., M1/M2s from France). Students will be directly mentored by RP and senior group members. Funding is usually available, e.g., URSS for Warwick Chemistry/Physics students, but it is best to get in-touch early if interested!
PhDs
As outlined above and in the research sections, experimental PhD projects can vary from building your own optical setup to probe non-equilibrium dynamics to synthesising nanomaterials with exotic quantum properties (and everything in-between). Theory projects can be equally varied ranging from pushing what we can learn with ultrafast optical schemes to understanding the interaction of entangled photons with matter.
If you are interested in pursuing a project with us it is best to get in-touch early (about a year before when you want to start; PhDs in the UK typically begin in October). Full-support will be provided in obtaining funding.
We have guaranteed funding for at least 1 (UK) student starting in October 2024, so please do reach-out even if it’s just for a chat about what we do!
See here for further details on this project: https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DFK090/phd-studentship-ultrafast-quantum-dynamics-in-next-generation-energy-materials
Postdocs
We are always happy to hear from people interested in pursuing a postdoc in any area related to the work of the group. Every effort will be made in crafting exciting & unique projects together, as well as helping write fellowship/funding applications. Postdocs can expect a high-degree of autonomy in leading their work and co-supervising younger students (if they wish), as well as career-development.
We want to learn from you and you from us. But some background in e.g., light-shaping, (ultrafast) non-linear optics, signal processing, XFELs/THz can be useful. Similarly, some comfort with basic device assembly, materials synthesis/handling can also be advantageous. But projects will always be tailored to what you want to learn and we have lots of cool & unique tools to play with. For postdocs an ability to program in Python, Matlab or C++ is important. If you’re interested in exploring options, please get in-touch for an informal chat!