PhD Candidate in Condensed Matter Physics

Discovering ways to control the magnetic state of media with the lowest possible dissipation of energy and at the highest speed could be of utmost importance for the development of next-generation magnetic storage. The goal of this project will be to investigate the possibilities of ultrafast magnetisation reversal by resonantly exciting phonons. For the excitation, infrared-terahertz radiation from the FELIX free electron laser will be used. The first stage of the project will be to develop a two-colour pump-probe single-shot imaging setup. In this project we concentrate on an approach where a small resonant excitation of a precisely selected mode can trigger a macroscopic change of state. To achieve and microscopically understand this non-invasive control of the responsible order parameters, we study the role of phonons in dynamic symmetry breaking, their anharmonic coupling and their general impact on the ferroic order.

You will collaborate closely with a PhD candidate under the supervision of Dr A. Paarmann and Dr S.F. Maehrlein at the Fritz-Haber-Institut in Berlin (Germany), who are working on polarisation resolved nonlinear microscopy in order to derive a full understanding of the phonon-breaking symmetry in ferroic crystals.

As part of your PhD training, you will perform duties as a teaching assistant in our Physics and Astronomy educational programme, supervising BSc and MSc students within the context of your project.