Supervisors

Dr Maciej Dabrowski

The University of Exeter is offering up to 9 fully funded doctoral studentships for September 2024 entry as part of our Doctoral Training Partnership with the EPSRC (Engineering, Physical Sciences Reserach Council).

The University of Exeter offers a world-class education and research in one of the most beautiful locations in the UK. As a Russell Group University our research makes a difference across the world and we’re committed to working with our PhD researchers to make the world greener, healthier, and fairer.  Our Doctoral College stimulates, supports and sustains a vibrant research and intellectual environment across and between disciplines for postgraduate and early career researchers. Focusing on investment and development in training, resources and facilities, we provide an outstanding quality experience for those in the early stages of their research careers.

The EPSRC is the main funding body for engineering and physical sciences research in the UK. The EPSRC's portfolio ranges from digital technologies to clean energy, manufacturing to mathematics, advanced materials to chemistry.

Competition details

The following project is one of eighteen being advertised as part of a competitive process for funding, there are a maximum of nine awards available.

Project Details

Two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) materials feature exotic electrical, magnetic, optical, and structural properties, providing energy and area efficiencies far exceeding what is possible with conventional electronics. Of particular interests here is recently discovered 2D vdW semiconducting antiferromagnet CrSBr [1,2]. CrSBr emerges as an outstanding candidate for quantum application because it possesses spin-correlated excitons with strong anisotropy, exhibiting one of the largest exciton oscillator strengths in solids and high photoluminescence quantum yield. Furthermore, strong light-matter coupling has been recently demonstrated in this material, resulting in a previously unobserved class of quasiparticles with exciton-polaritons being coupled to magnons [1-3].

Recent theoretical calculations suggest that, in combination with other 2D layers such as graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), CrSBr should allow for ultrafast control of electron spin [4]. TMDCs are of enormous interest because their local extrema in the electronic band structure called valleys are highly desirable for quantum computation with valley-based qubits. This project explores the design of metamaterials composed of TMDCs and 2D magnetic material CrSBr, with the ultimate goal of building a new generation quantum platform exploiting both valley and spin degree of freedom. Combining the properties of TMDCs and 2D magnets is extremely attractive for the quantum technologies because it consolidates the advantages of solid-state based qubits and photonic qubits. By proving the concept of novel, multi-functional qubits based on vdW materials, development of both quantum software and hardware is expected, which potentially could lead to commercial products and new applications in quantum technologies.

The project will primarily focus on time-resolved measurements using ultrafast laser pulses, to probe the dynamics of valleys and spins. I have recently demonstrated that similar heterostructures based on TMDCs and 2D magnets can lead to exotic phenomena such as all-optical switching via ultrafast charge transfer, and that such materials can be successfully probed in our laboratories in Exeter [5]. Thanks to unique coupling between excitons and magnons in CrSBr [1-3], dynamics of spins can be directly probed in time-resolved measurements, even though the spins form an antiferromagnetic order. Unlike other 2D magnets CrSBr is stable in air, substantially reducing the technological challenges associated with fabrication and making the proposed heterostructures particularly appealing to practical quantum applications. This project aligns with Quantum Technologies theme and if the proposed here approach based upon valley-spin states is to be recognized as the leading concept towards efficient quantum computing, it will have profound effect on the entire quantum industry.

References:
[1] Y. Bae et al. Exciton-coupled coherent magnons in a 2D semiconductor, Nature vol. 609, 282 (2022).
[2] F. Dirnberger et al. Magneto-optics in a van der Waals magnet tuned by self-hybridized polaritons, Nature vol. 620, 533 (2023).
[3] N. Wilson et al. Interlayer electronic coupling on demand in a 2D magnetic semiconductor, Nature Materials vol. 20, 1657 (2021).
[4] C. Brito et al. Charge Transfer and Asymmetric Coupling of MoSe2 Valleys to the Magnetic Order of CrSBr, Nano Letters vol. 23, 11073 (2023).
[5] M. Dąbrowski et al. All-optical control of spin in a 2D van der Waals magnet, Nat. Commun. vol. 13, 5976 (2022).

Funding Information

For successful eligible applicants, the studentship comprises:

•     An index-linked stipend for up to 3.5 years full-time (currently £19,237 for 2024_25), pro-rata
      for part-time students.
•     Payment of University tuition fees
•     Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) of £5,000 over 3.5 years, or pro-rata for part-time
      students.

Fully-funded studentships are available for Home students.  A limited number (up to 30%) of UKRI fully-funded studentships are also available for applicants considered International for fee purposes.  Please see our DTP pages for more details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity

The University of Exeter is committed to promoting and supporting equality, diversity, and inclusion within our working environments and is at the heart of all our activities.  With over 27,000 students and 6,400 staff from 180 different countries, we offer a diverse and engaging environment where our diversity is celebrated and valued as a major strength. 

We actively encourage applicants with varied experiences and backgrounds and from all sections of the community regardless of age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, religion, or disability status.  We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where all members of our community are supported to thrive.

Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our postgraduate research student community.  Reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workspaces.

Entry requirements

Applicants should have obtained, or be about to obtain, a First or Upper Second Class UK Honours degree, or the equivalent qualifications gained outside the UK, in an appropriate area of science or technology.  Applicants with a Lower Second Class degree will be considered if they also have a Masters degree or have significant relevant non-academic experience.

If English is not your first language you will need to meet the English language requirements and provide proof of proficiency. Click here for more information and a list of acceptable alternative tests.

How to apply

Apply now

To apply for this research project you will need to click on the 'Apply Now' button below.  Any applications submitted via other routes will not be considered for the studentship funding. 

In the application process you will be asked to upload several documents.  Please note our preferred format is PDF, each file named with your surname and the name of the document, eg. “Smith – CV.pdf”, “Smith – Cover Letter.pdf”, “Smith – Transcript.pdf”.

You will be asked to upload the following documents:

•     CV
•     A cover letter outlining your academic interests, prior research experience
      and reasons for wishing to undertake the project. 
•     Transcript(s) giving full details of subjects studied and grades/marks obtained.  This
      should be an interim transcript if you are still studying.
•     Two academic referees - see information below about references.
•     If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country you will need to submit
      evidence of your proficiency in English (see entry requirements above)
   

Please see our dedicated DTP website for full details.

The closing date for applications is midnight (GMT) on Monday 27th May 2024.   

Reference Information

You will be asked to submit two references as part of the application process.  If you are not able to upload  your reference documents with your application please ensure you provide details of your referees.  If you provide contact details of referees only, we will not expect receipt of references until after the shortlisting stage. Your referees should not be from the prospective supervisory team.

If you are shortlisted for interview, please ensure that your two academic referees email their references to PGRApplicants@exeter.ac.uk, 7 days prior to the interview dates.  Please note that we will not be contacting referees to request references, you must arrange for them to be submitted to us by the deadline.

References should be submitted by your referees to us directly in the form of a letter. Referees must email their references to us from their institutional email accounts. We cannot accept references from personal/private email accounts, unless it is a scanned document on institutional headed paper and signed by the referee.

Contact Information

If you have any general enquiries about the application process please email PGRApplicants@exeter.ac.uk

If you have project specific enquiries please contact the lead supervisor named above.

Data Sharing

During the application process, the University may need to make certain disclosures of your personal data to third parties to be able to administer your application, carry out interviews and select candidates.  These are not limited to but may include disclosures to:

• the selection panel and/or management board or the equivalent of the relevant programme, which is likely to include staff from one or more other HEIs;
• administrative staff at one or more other HEIs participating in the relevant programme.

Such disclosures will always be kept to the minimum amount of personal data required for the specific purpose. Your sensitive personal data (relating to disability and race/ethnicity) will not be disclosed without your explicit consent.

Summary