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Applications are sought for a committed Postdoctoral Research Fellow to work with Professors Graham Turnbull and Ifor Samuel conducting research for a UKRI/Horizon Europe funded project entitled High-Speed Organic Photonics and OptoElectronics (HiSOPE).
This project will develop organic lasers and OLEDs as a new generation of high-speed and environmentally sustainable light sources, suitable for a range of applications including optical interconnects, wireless communications and IoT sensors. The primary duties will be to develop high-speed OLEDs and organic lasers, measure photophysical properties of organic semiconductors and characterize device performance.
The successful applicant will have (or be near to completion of) a PhD in physics or a related discipline with expertise in fabrication of organic light-emitting diodes.
The post is available for 24 months starting 1st April or as soon as possible thereafter.
Apply at: https://www.vacancies.st-andrews.ac.uk/Vacancies/W/3529/0/444948/889/research-fellow-ar3088rh
Fully funded PhD scholarship as part of a European collaboration
This project will develop organic lasers and OLEDs as a new generation of high-speed and environmentally sustainable light sources, suitable for a range of applications including optical interconnects, wireless communications and IoT sensors.
OLEDs are now widely commercially used in the displays of smartphones and televisions. Recent research advances in OLED technology, made by our group in St Andrews and collaborators, show that OLEDs also have great potential for very fast wireless optical communications (e.g.LiFi) (e.g. [Yoshida et al. Nature Communications (2020)]. Currently, however, most high-performance commercial optoelectronic devices (lasers and LEDs) are based on III-V semiconductors, which require high-energy manufacture and use of toxic and critical raw materials. In a new collaborative project, working with scientists and engineers from France, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Scotland, we aim to develop organic semiconductors as a sustainable alternative to conventional III-V optoelectronic devices, while offering similar performance.
We recently made a breakthrough in demonstrating an electrically driven organic laser [Yoshida et al., Nature (2023)] by integrating a fast OLED into the laser. This has opened a route to leverage high-speed OLED technology to make a new class of visible lasers. This first concept laser operated at low repetition rate and had low slope efficiency (at µW/A level). In this project we will advance this fledgling technology to demonstrate efficient (at mW/A level) electrically driven organic lasers to generate sub-ns pulse trains, and apply these for the first time in optical interconnects, in data communication and IoT. Working with our European collaborators, we aim to embed “cradle-to-cradle” full life cycle sustainability into the design of new high performance organic semiconductor devices to deliver optoelectronics with low environmental footprint.
This PhD project will develop the organic laser design and integrate laser cavities with high-speed OLEDs, before testing these devices for applications including optical interconnects and optical sensors. The research project will combine studies of new materials, novel photonic design and cleanroom fabrication, as well as optical measurements. The student will be supervised by Professor Graham Turnbull and Professor Ifor Samuel (Organic Semiconductor Centre, University of St Andrews), and will have opportunities for collaborative research with our European partners.
A fully funded (fees and stipend) scholarship is available for this project. Informal enquiries regarding this scholarship may be addressed to Prof. Ifor Samuel or Prof. Graham Turnbull.
How to apply:
Apply at https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/
Please indicate in your application that you wish to be considered for the project on “High-speed, sustainable lasers based on OLEDs”
View all our advertised PhD projects, funding information, and how to apply.
We welcome applications from well-qualified candidates to study for a PhD. We have PhD projects available across our research activities, with topics ranging from materials physics to optoelectronic devices, and their applications including in biophotonics, sensors, and communications.
View a list of all our advertised PhD projects
Please contact Prof. Ifor Samuel or Prof. Graham Turnbull to discuss further if you are interested.
Further information on funding, and how to apply for a PhD at the University of St Andrews, is available on the School of Physics & Astronomy Postgraduate Research Courses page
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