PhD student position on microscopic modelling of 2D materials

Department of Physics at Chalmers - home of the Graphene Flagship
Stimulated by major needs and challenges in science and a sustainable society, the ambition of the department of Physics is to foster a creative environment for academic research, learning and outreach. We provide a competitive advantage by linking our top-level international and interdisciplinary academic performance in the areas of material science, nanotechnology and energy research with world-leading industrial R&D&I projects. We address a wide array of experimental, computational, methodological and theoretical challenges, from fundamental physics research, through the development of new materials such as graphene to direct industrial projects generating new inventions. We have a strong learning commitment on all levels from undergraduate to PhD studies where physics meet engineering.

The department is the major part of Gothenburg Physics Centre – a collaboration between four departments at Chalmers and Gothenburg University.

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Information about the project
The PhD project focuses on theoretical modelling of transition metal dichalcogenides, which are expected to play an important role in the future nanoelectronics. In particular, they show a unique photoemission due to the presence of strongly bound dark excitons and impurity-induced localized excitons. The project is stimulated by very recent experimental studies showing single photon emission from disordered edges in these materials. The observations have attracted a huge interest, since they are fascinating for fundamental nano-research and highly promising for novel technological applications.

Major responsibilities
Your major responsibility as a PhD student is to pursue the goals of your research project. You are also expected to develop own ideas and find your own ways in tackling research challenges. The position may also include some level of teaching duties as well as taking part in the supervision of bachelor and master students. Another important aspect involves national and international collaboration with experimental research groups.

Position summary
Full-time temporary employment. The employment is composed of a maximum full-time four-year doctoral programme and a maximum one year of department duties, including teaching, equivalent to a maximum of 20 % of the total working time. The employment is thus limited to a total of five years. The employment is tied to successful completion of department evaluations after one and three years.

Qualifications
To qualify as a PhD student, you must have a master's level degree corresponding to at least 240 higher education credits in physics and have a strong interest theoretical solid-state physics and in particular computational modeling. You should enjoy working in a collaborative environment including interactions with both theoreticians and experimentalists. An ideal candidate has already advanced skills in programming (C or C++).

The position requires good communication skills in written and spoken English. Applicants who do not have English or a Scandinavian language as their mother tongue need to provide documentation of  good communication skills in English, typically evidenced by an English language test, for example TOEFL 550 (paper-based)/TOEFL 213 (computer-based), and exemplified during the interview process prior to admission.

Chalmers continuously strives to be an attractive employer. Equality and diversity are substantial foundations in all activities at Chalmers.

Application procedure
The application should be marked with Ref 20160264 and written in English. The application should be sent electronically via Chalmers webpage.


Application deadline: 1 August 2016

For questions, please contact:
Prof. Dr. Ermin Malic,
Condensed Matter Theory,
ermin.malic@chalmers.se,
+46 31 772 3263

Prof. Dr. Andreas Isacsson,
Condensed Matter Theory,
andreas.isacsson@chalmers.se, 
+46 31 772 3187