Fully funded PhD position available in the School of Physics at University College Dublin (UCD), Ireland.

Applications are invited for a PhD position at the School of Physics, University College Dublin, Ireland. The successful candidate will join the Computational Materials Research group led by Dr Nuala Caffrey (https://people.ucd.ie/nuala.caffrey).

Project Description: Modelling the self-organisation of metal-organic molecular networks on active substrates.

The goal of this project is to computationally design atomically-thin ‘smart surfaces’ which can change their form or function in response to external stimuli.
The student will use ab initio density functional theory (DFT) calculations to establish the relationship between the architecture and function of two-dimensional metal-organic coordination network (2D-MOCN) on a solid substrate.
They will determine how the nature of the substrate affects the anchoring and organization of a 2D-MOCN, and how that in turn affects the reactivity of the network to its environment.

The PhD position is fully funded for 4 years, including a stipend of €18,000 per annum and a travel budget to present at international conferences.

Applicant Requirements:
Applicants must have at least a first or upper second-class honours primary degree and/or master’s degree, or the equivalent, in a physics-related discipline. A solid background in condensed matter physics and an interest in computational methods is required. 
Excellent written and oral communication skills are essential, including meeting the minimum English language requirements of UCD (http://www.ucd.ie/registry/admissions/elr.html).

Application Details:
Applicants should send (1) a CV, (2) a cover letter explaining their interest in the project topic and mentioning any relevant background and/or experience and (3) the names and contact details of 2 academic references to Dr. Nuala Caffrey ([email protected]) in a single PDF.

Application Deadline: 10th March 2020.
Successful applicants must be formally enrolled by the UCD School of Physics by the start of September 2020.

Informal enquires welcome. Contact Dr. Nuala Caffrey at [email protected]