Funding type:
Tuition fee.
Stipend.
Research Training & Support Grant.
4-years full studentship opportunity for a Home student in Physics.
Award details
Metamaterials are engineered structures designed to manipulate physical phenomena in ways not possible with natural materials. Among their many applications, controlling thermal properties is a particularly promising area. Time-varying metamaterials, which change their properties dynamically over time, offer innovative solutions for thermal management. These materials can be programmed to respond to external stimuli such as temperature, light, or electromagnetic fields, enabling precise control over heat flow and distribution. This dynamic behaviour opens up new possibilities for applications in energy efficiency, thermal insulation, thermal cloaking and advanced cooling systems for electronics. By leveraging the unique capabilities of time-varying metamaterials, this project aims to develop systems that can adapt to changing environmental conditions, optimize thermal performance, and enhance the overall efficiency of various technologies. The project includes both numerical modelling and experimental components. The metamaterials will be designed using numerical techniques, fabricated and their optical and thermal properties characterised experimentally. The student will learn electromagnetic simulations using commercial numerical tools, advanced nanofabrication techniques, including thin film deposition and electron beam lithography, linear and nonlinear optical measurements using the state of the art femtosecond-laser facilities.
Award value
Funding is available for 4 years and covers tuition fees and a tax-free stipend of approximately £25,300 p.a. with inflationary increases after the first year. Funds are also available for travel, conferences and training.
Eligibility criteria
Applicants who must be UK citizens are expected to have a masters-level degree or 1st class BSc degree, or are awaiting its award, in a relevant area (e.g., Physics or Engineering). Candidates should have a keen interest in nanomaterials and their applications, and some experience in either nanofabrication, optical measurements or electromagnetic simulations (experience in all these components is desirable but not essential).
Application process
Interested candidates should apply online via the King's Apply admissions portal.
Please refer to the How to Apply webpage for guidance.
Please apply for [Physics Full time MPhil/PhD] and indicate Professor Anatoly Zayats as the supervisor and quote the project title in your application and all correspondence.
Please ensure to add the following code [EPSRCIDLAZayats2501] in the Funding section of the application form. Please select option 5 ‘I am applying for a funding award or scholarship administered by King’s College London’ and type the code into the ‘Award Scheme Code or Name’ box. Please copy and paste the code exactly.
Contact Details
Professor Anatoly Zayats, a.zayats@kcl.ac.uk