PhD scholarship in Bluelight Thin-Film Lithium Niobate-on-Insulator Integrated Photonics Platform for BlueArray under...

We are hereby announcing a PhD position within the topic of blue-light thin-film lithium niobate-on-insulator (LNOI) integrated photonics platform, which will be utilized for future optical phased array (OPA) - based underwater communication. The PhD project is part of the European Innovation Commission (EIC) Pathfinder programme project ‘BlueArray: Integrated blue light phased arrays enabling underwater optical wireless networks: towards a new era of Internet of Underwater Things (IoUT)’. The IoUT, an extension of Internet of Things (IoT) to the underwater environment, would represent a technological revolution for building the future smart ocean, where underwater optical wireless communication (UOWC) using blue-green light is considered to be the key technology for real-time high-speed communications. Thin-film LNOI photonics is extremely promising for the UOWC application given its high transparency at blue-green light wavelength, high electro-optical coefficient, and low loss, allowing OPA-based underwater communications in a high speed.

The PhD project will partly be tied to the High-Speed Optical Communications group (HSOC) and partly to the Nanophotonic Devices group at the Department of Electrical and Photonics Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU Electro). The HSOC group is at the very forefront of international research in optical communications technology and holds a number of world records within ultra-high speed optical communication using the various in-house advanced integrated photonics platforms, e.g. silicon, lithium niobate, and silicon nitride photonics. The Nanophotonics Devices group work within a broad range of topics ranging from advanced passive and nonlinear devices for frequency- and spatial-domain light manipulation to complex integrated optoelectronic circuits with tailored material responses that allows light emission and control in the temporal domain. Both groups are at a highly international level, encourage collaborative work, and offer an informal working environment. The project will have access to on-site and state-of-the-art experimental and cleanroom facilities.

Project description
The Ph.D. project is to develop a new thin-film LNOI integrated photonic platform at blue light wavelength band. The Ph.D. student will firstly design key passive and active components e.g. low-loss waveguides, efficiency couplers, and high-speed electro-optical modulators at blue-light wavelength. The designed components will then be fabricated based on our advanced low-loss lithium niobate photonics cleanroom fabrication facilities at the DTU Nanolabs, and characterized with the state-of-the-art lab facilities at the HSOC group. An array of blue-light LNOI EO phase modulators will be also developed, and how to decrease potential crosstalk between the phase modulators will be investigated. Furthermore, silicon photodetectors on LNOI is going to be studied by e.g. transfer-printing method, which will enable on-chip monitoring of the blue-light OPA. The PhD student working on this project will closely collaborate with another PhD project working on blue-light OPA on-chip based on the developed LNOI platform. Candidates having a strong background within photonics and having experience with integrated photonics are preferred. The project will among others consist of the following tasks:

• Design, optimize, fabrication and characterization of passive blue-light LNOI waveguide components, e.g. low-loss waveguides, couplers
• Design, optimize, fabrication and characterization of high-speed blue-light EO modulators
• Design, optimize, fabrication and characterization of on-chip blue-light silicon detectors

As part of the Danish Ph.D. program the student will follow a number of Ph.D. courses and there will be an opportunity to have an external research stay at an internationally recognized group outside Denmark. To frame and support the project, DTU Electro has close collaborations with numerous internationally leading universities and research organizations.

Qualifications
You must have a two-year master's degree (120 ECTS points) or a similar degree with an academic level equivalent to a two-year master's degree.

Approval and Enrolment
The scholarship for the PhD degree is subject to academic approval, and the candidate will be enrolled in one of the general degree programmes at DTU. For information about our enrolment requirements and the general planning of the PhD study programme, please see DTU's rules for the PhD education .

Assessment
The assessment of the applicants will be made by Senior Researcher Yunhong Ding and Senior Researcher Hao Hu.

We offer
DTU is a leading technical university globally recognized for the excellence of its research, education, innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.

Salary and appointment terms
The appointment will be based on the collective agreement with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. The allowance will be agreed upon with the relevant union.

The period of employment is 3 years. The starting date is flexible and preferred to be 1 August 2024.

Workplace: DTU Electro, Department of Electrical and Photonics Engineering, at the Kgs. Lyngby Campus.

Further information
Further information may be obtained from Senior researcher Yunhong Ding ([email protected] ).

You can read more about DTU Electro on www.electro.dtu.dk.

If you are applying from abroad, you may find useful information on working in Denmark and at DTU at DTU – Moving to Denmark . Furthermore, you have the option of joining our monthly free seminar “PhD relocation to Denmark and startup “Zoom” seminar ” for all questions regarding the practical matters of moving to Denmark and working as a PhD at DTU.

Application procedure
Your complete online application must be submitted no later than 1 April 2024 (23:59 Danish time) . Applications must be submitted as one PDF file containing all materials to be given consideration. To apply, please open the link "Apply now", fill out the online application form, and attach all your materials in English in one PDF file . The file must include:

• A letter motivating the application (cover letter)
• Curriculum vitae
• Grade transcripts and BSc/MSc diploma (in English) including official description of grading scale.

You may apply prior to ob­tai­ning your master's degree but cannot begin before having received it.

Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

All interested candidates irrespective of age, gender, race, disability, religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply.

DTU Electro has 330 employees with competences in optics, acoustics and electronics and is one of the largest centers in the world in research in photonics. Research is performed within optical sensors, lasers, LEDs, photovoltaics, ultra-high speed optical transmission systems, bio-photonics, nano-optics and quantum photonics.

Technology for people
DTU develops technology for people. With our international elite research and study programmes, we are helping to create a better world and to solve the global challenges formulated in the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Hans Christian Ørsted founded DTU in 1829 with a clear mission to develop and create value using science and engineering to benefit society. That mission lives on today. DTU has 13,500 students and 6,000 employees. We work in an international atmosphere and have an inclusive, evolving, and informal working environment. DTU has campuses in all parts of Denmark and in Greenland, and we collaborate with the best universities around the world.

Kilde: Jobnet.dk