[School of Natural Sciences PhD Scholarships] Seeing the invisible: novel technologies for particle physics

About the project

About the Project In the 1960s, theoretical physicists wrote the rulebook for particle interactions: the Standard Model. For over fifty years the Standard Model has held up against every experimental test thrown at it, predicting the behaviour of matter with startling precision. But one particle refuses to follow the rules. The neutrino's disregard for the script may be exactly what let the Universe survive its own birth, tipping the scales just enough that matter outlived antimatter instead of annihilating it into a flash of light. Meanwhile, astronomers have found the Universe held together by something that the Standard Model never mentions: dark matter, whose gravity sculpts galaxies but whose particle nature has evaded every direct search for three decades. Neutrinos and dark matter are evidence that the Standard Model is one chapter of a longer book, and the rest of it is still unknown. The bottleneck for groundbreaking discoveries in particle physics isn't imagination: it's instrumentation. This PhD project will develop the enabling technology needed for beyond Standard Model discoveries: noble element time projection chambers (TPC). We will develop new VUV detectors and design the next-generation gas-detectors to see the invisible. The next generation of dark matter and neutrino experiments (DarkSide, LZ, nEXO, DUNE, NEXT) will instrument tens to hundreds of square metres with light sensors that must detect single photons in the vacuum-ultraviolet, where argon and xenon scintillate (127–178 nm) and where today's photo sensors achieve less than 20% efficiency. You will join an active R&D group developing amorphous-selenium and organic photodetectors with novel 2D-material coatings to push VUV quantum efficiency beyond the current state of the art. At University of Manchester's dedicated Noble Elements Laboratories and in collaboration with the Universities of Bologna, Granada and Berkeley National Labs, you will engage with the full cycle of device development, from fabrication through cryogenic and room-temperature characterisation (dark room, cryogenic system, deep-VUV instrumentation). You will also go beyond conventional TPC design, toward a genuinely new imaging concept: an ion-based TPC, which pairs a coarse electron-generated tracking with the potential of tens of microns resolution imprint on long-lived ions-flourescent image at the cathode. Together, we will develop the detector design studies needed to translate this concept into a working directional dark matter detector and, further, to explore its potential for reconstructing the short, kinked tracks left by tau neutrino interactions — a capability no existing technology offers at scale. Together, these two strands span the full arc of experimental detector physics: from sensor material and fabrication, through characterisation and testing, to simulation-driven design of a full detector concept — giving you a uniquely broad and transferable skill set spanning fabrication, cryogenics, optics, and Geant4/GARFIELD-based simulation. This project is expected to start in September 2027. Before you apply: We strongly recommend that you contact the supervisors for this project before you apply. How to apply: To be considered for this project you must complete a formal application through our online application portal. If you already have an applicant account this link will directly open an application for PhD School of Natural Sciences Scholarships . If you don’t already have an applicant account, please follow the instructions here . When applying, please specify the full title and supervisor/s of the project, details of your previous study, and names and contact details of two referees. You must also upload a Supporting Statement describing your motivation to apply to the project, your CV and transcripts of awarded and in-progress university qualifications . Please note late or incomplete applications will not be considered. Equality, diversity and inclusion are fundamental to the success of The University of Manchester and central to all our activities. A diverse research community strengthens creativity, productivity and quality, while increasing the societal and economic impact of our work. We welcome applicants from all career paths, backgrounds and sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation or transgender status. We welcome applications from candidates returning to study after a career break or experience in other roles. Flexible study arrangements may be available, including part-time study at 50%, 60% or 80%, subject to the requirements of the project and funder. Eligibility : The standard academic entry requirement for this PhD is an upper second-class (2:1) honours degree in Physics (or international equivalent) OR any upper-second class (2:1) honours degree and a Master’s degree at merit in Physics (or international equivalent). This project will remain open until filled. If your application is submitted by 1 st November 2026, you can expect a decision by 18 th December 2026. If your application is submitted by 15 th January 2027, you can expect a decision by 30 th March 2027. Self or externally funded students can also be considered for this project. FSESoNS

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