PhD student in attosecond free-electron lasers

Published: 2023-03-08

Uppsala University is a comprehensive research-intensive university with a strong international standing. Our ultimate goal is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to make a long-term difference in society. Our most important assets are all the individuals whose curiosity and dedication make Uppsala University one of Sweden’s most exciting workplaces. Uppsala University has over 54,000 students, more than 7,500 employees and a turnover of around SEK 8 billion.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy is one of Uppsala University's largest with almost 400 employees, of which about 125 are doctoral students. The department conducts world-class research and education in both theoretical and experimental physics and has extensive collaboration with the outside world. The FREIA Laboratory, a Division of the Department, is developing and testing new particle accelerator and detector. The research and development work are closely linked to major research infrastructure projects like ESS and MAX IV in Lund or the European XFEL in Hamburg. FREIA has around 30 employees, including researchers, engineers and PhD students. More information on our websites: www.physics.uu.se and www.physics.uu.se/research/freia-lab/ .

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at Uppsala University

Description of the project
Today, the X-ray Free-Electron Laser (XFEL) is a unique scientific instrument proving picometre spatial and attosecond temporal resolution for studying charge transfer in molecules, radiation damage in biomolecules, electron dynamics in chemical bonds and electron tunnelling during photoemission. Ultrashort light pulses play an indispensable role in the progress of fundamental science, as they provide the necessary temporal resolution for probing and controlling ultrafast processes in matter. The purpose of this project is to drive further the theoretical and experimental development of XFELs and provide the user community with new attosecond capabilities at the European XFEL. The project capitalises on a close collaboration of the accelerator groups at Lund and Uppsala universities with the FEL development groups XFEL and DESY in Hamburg.

The objective of the PhD is twofold:

to participate in the design and construction of an attosecond undulator line at the European XFEL;

to develop new methods for the generation of tunable double attosecond pulses in XFELs.

The successful candidate will work in a team of experienced researchers and scientific staff and will acquire valuable practical skills including operating state-of-the-art laser fs lasers, electron and photon diagnostics, development of new attosecond light sources. The candidate will also learn advanced models of laser-electron interaction. Hence, we are looking for a highly-motivated candidate who has an excellent record of studies and interested in advanced lasers. 

Duties
The successful candidate will devote most of the time to research studies, which implies participating in research projects and third cycle courses. The work duties can also include teaching and other departmental duties (no more than 20%). The position will be extended with the time devoted to teaching to allow four years of full-time graduate studies.

Research studies will include:

• Modelling of electron-laser interaction
• Modelling of attosecond pulse generation in XFELs
• Participating in experiments on laser-electron interaction at the European XFEL
• Documentation of ongoing work and presentation of well-documented results
• Writing of academic articles and technical reports.

Requirements
To meet the entry requirements for doctoral studies, you must:

• hold a Master’s (second-cycle) degree in physics, technical physics or equivalent
• have completed at least 240 credits in higher education, with at least 60 credits at Master’s level including an independent project worth at least 15 credits, or
• have acquired substantially equivalent knowledge in some other way.

The successful candidate must have demonstrated:

• Solid understanding of wave optics and physics of charged particle beams
• Knowledge of basic laser physics
• Successful studies in condensed matter physics or chemistry.

The successful candidate must be:

• Skilled in high-quality academic writing
• Capable to express yourself in a clear, structured and to the point manner
• Capable of preparing clear and concise summaries of ongoing work
• Be able to document the workflow in a way that is searchable and easy to understand for other group members.

Additional qualifications
Meriting skills include knowledge in:

• Physics of free-electron lasers
• Programming and data analysis (e.g. Python, Matlab)

Excellent grades from the second-cycle education are a merit.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines .

Application
Theapplication should include the following documents in the corresponding order:

• a statement about why the candidate is interested and suitable for the announced position (1-2 pages)
• a CV (1 page)
• a letter describing the research interests and past experience (1-2 pages)
• copies of degree certificates and grades. Please indicate in per cent the average grade for bachelor and master studies.
• a master thesis (or a draft thereof
• a sample of academic writing in English. This can be an extract from a thesis
• contact details of two references
• other documents that the applicant wishes to refer to

About the employment
The employment is atemporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7. Scope of employment 100 %.Starting date 1 June 2023 or as agreed. Placement:Uppsala

For further information about the position, please contact: Lecturer Vitaliy Goryashko, [email protected]

Please submit your application by 3 April 2023, UFV-PA 2023/861.

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Submit your application through Uppsala University's recruitment system.

Placement: Department of Physics and Astronomy

Type of employment: Full time , Temporary position

Pay: Fixed salary

Number of positions: 1

Working hours: 100 %

Town: Uppsala

County: Uppsala län

Country: Sweden

Union representative: ST/TCO [email protected]
Seko Universitetsklubben [email protected]
Saco-rådet [email protected]

Number of reference: UFV-PA 2023/851

Last application date: 2023-04-03

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