PhD in Theory of Trapping and Cooling of Ions and Electrons

24 Jan 2024
Job Information

Organisation/Company

J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the CAS, v. v. i.

Research Field

Physics

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Czech Republic

Application Deadline

14 Feb 2024 - 23:00 (Europe/Prague)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

We are offering a position of a PhD student in the theoretical part of an original and innovative project studying cold trapped ions and electrons. It is a joint project of an experimental and a theoretical research group. The main goal of the whole project is to develop a device that will trap electrons along with the positive ions. Among many exciting applications in quantum technologies, this device will be capable of detection of very weak radio-frequency signal. Further applications, beyond the scope of the current project, include quantum simulators and quantum computing.

Trapping and cooling of the electrons has not been achieved so far. Therefore, the research objective is very original and this research has a potential to pave the road towards multiple innovations. The activities within the experimental part of the project involve the design and construction of the trap, cooling technology and a system to detect the presence of the trapped electron. On the other hand, the theoretical part will deal with more fundamental aspects:

* Is there any significant exchange of energy between the electron and ions inside the trap? What is the underlying
  mechanism?
* Is it possible for the trap to support any bound states of an electron and multiple ions that would not exist without the   trap?
* Does this trapped system support any bound states with a high angular momentum?
* From a more practical point of view: What parameters of the trap are optimal for simultaneous trapping of the electron and ions?

The funding of this position is secured for four years. The candidate is expected to graduate from this position within this period (as this is a typical time necessary for graduation from a PhD program in this field).

Work tasks:
The theoretical research within this project will consist of classical and quantum-mechanical calculations of an electron-ion system in the Paul trap. Specifically:

* construction of a model of a single electron and one or several positive ions in an RF time-dependent potential
* formulation and implementation of a numerical method suitable for calculations of the trapped Rydberg states, including
  their dynamics beyond the Born-Oppenheimer approximation

Career benefits of this PhD position:
* PhD degree in physics at Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague
* competitive position to pursue further career in quantum technologies, either on academic or industrial level
* competitive position to pursue further academic career in theoretical atomic, molecular and optical physics
* advanced training in numerical methods suitable specifically for quantum mechanical calculations of electrons in the
  continuum interacting with positive ions (quantum-defect theory, R-matrix, possibly frame transformation)
* advanced training in numerical methods suitable for general physics and engineering (B-splines, large linear systems,
  large eigenvalue problems, etc)
* advanced training in software design for scientific HPC (best core practices, parallelization and vectorization, libraries for
  linear algebra, foundations of programming for GPU)
* interaction with other related theoretical and computational groups at Charles University and Czech Academy of Sciences
  (theoretical chemistry, quantum dynamics of electrons in continuum - theory of resonances)
* work in small research group with easily accessible PhD advisor for frequent communication
* frequent interaction with the experimentalists in the field

Requirements:
* completed undergraduate education in physics or related program with an understanding of the curriculum in quantum
  mechanics
* Solid knowledge of foundations of calculus, linear algebra and numerical mathematics on the level of the university
  curricula
* Fluent English
* Ability to program in at least one of the following languages: Fortran90, C++, Python

If you are not convinced whether you meet all the requirements, you are still encouraged to apply as long as your previous training generally matches this project and as long as you are willing to learn.

We offer:

• 5 weeks paid leave of absence (holidays) per year + 3 days of paid sick-leave in addition to the statutory insurance
• Flexible working-time, the possibility of part-time work
• Lunch vouchers
• Possibility of attending children groups of the CAS
• Sports goods rental, free parking, trade union library
• Language courses
• Possibility of further education and career development by participating in courses organized by our institute.

Eligibility criteria:
To apply, please send your CV, motivation letter, list of passed exams along with their grades and references  to recruitment@jh-inst.cas.cz. Include SC2024_08 in the subject line of your email.

If applying for the first postdoctoral position after PhD, submit a reference to your PhD thesis (if available online).
Optionally, you can provide at most three letters of recommendation from your former advisors or senior collaborator.

Selection process

By providing us with your personal data in your CV, you have allowed J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry to process and file your CV in the HR database. Your personal data will be used for the internal HR needs of the J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry only. At the same time, you confirm here that the personal data as stated in the CV you have sent to us is true and accurate.

Requirements

Research Field

Physics

Education Level

Master Degree or equivalent

Additional Information
Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the CAS, v. v. i.

Country

Czech Republic

Geofield

Where to apply

E-mail

[email protected]

Contact

State/Province

Czech Republic

City

Prague 8

Website

http://web.jh-inst.cas.cz/

Street

Dolejškova 2155/3

Postal Code

182 23

E-Mail

[email protected]

STATUS: EXPIRED