Salary Range: £32,236 - £34,189 (restricted due to funding)
FTE: 1.0
Term: Fixed Term (24 months from 1 January 2019 with possibility of a further 12 month extension)
Closing Date: 25 January 2019
Applications are invited for a postdoctoral research associate to work on a new project developing novel sensors for the detection and imaging of RF fields using Rydberg atoms. Rydberg atoms have extremely large electric dipole moments in the microwave and terahertz domain which act as microscopic antennae offering key advantages over existing technologies including the ability to achieve sub-wavelength resolution, traceable SI calibration of field-strength and all-optical detection. The main goals of the project include development of a portable sensor in collaboration with the University of Durham featuring optimised vapour cell geometries for use in measurement campaigns at National Physical Laboratory (NPL) Teddington to provide benchmarking of the absolute accuracy of the atomic gas sensors. Additionally, new techniques to achieve sensitivities at the quantum projection noise limit will be explored alongside application of the sensors to microwave communication protocols including WiFi.
The successful applicant will be based in the Department of Physics under the supervision of Dr. Jonathan Pritchard, an EPSRC Quantum Technology Fellow, within the Experimental Quantum Optics and Photonics group at Strathclyde. Candidates will have a PhD (or close to completion) in experimental optics or photonics or have equivalent experience. An ability to prepare scientific publications and present research outcomes at local, national and international research meetings is expected. There will also be opportunities to present the demonstrator at the UK Quantum Technology Showcase events.
For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Jonathan Pritchard, Research Fellow, at jonathan.pritchard@strath.ac.uk or on 0141 548 5813.
Interviews for this post are expected to be held during week commencing 04 February 2019.
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