Dear Colleagues,
I would appreciate your forwarding the following announcement to any
excellent MS or PhD students you know who are looking for PhD or
postdoctoral positions.
Thanks in advance, and best wishes,
Nicola
The following positions are available in the Materials Theory group
at ETH Zürich at either the postdoctoral or PhD level:
Position 1 -- Dark Matter Detection via Electronic Structure
Theory. A promising and largely unexplored alternative to the
paradigm of WIMP dark matter is that dark matter exists at an energy
scale for which interactions with electrons, rather than atomic
nuclei, are possible. In this project we will study the interaction
of new hypothetical dark matter particles with electrons in solids
by implementing the interaction of their proposed Langrangians with
the electronic subsystem within the density functional formalism.
Our ultimate goal is to optimize materials for Dark Matter
detection. The project involves collaboration with the theoretical
astroparticle physics group of Riccardo Catena at Chalmers
University, Sweden and the electronic structure group of Emilio
Artacho at NanoGune in San Sebastian, Spain.
Position 2 -- First principles-based study of multi-caloric
effects. Application of magnetic, electric, or stress fields
can lead to significant temperature changes in materials close to a
ferroic phase transition. Such giant caloric effects have great
potential for energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly cooling
devices. In this project, we will use effective model Hamiltonians
derived from first principles calulations to study the caloric
response of ferroic materials. A particular focus is on
``multi-caloric'' effects where either an applied field can couple
to multiple ferroic order parameters or where application of
multiple external fields can lead to an optimized caloric response.
The work will also involve a certain amount of programming/code
development. The project is part of the focus program ``Ferroic
cooling'' established by the German Science Foundation (see:
www.ferroiccooling.de) and involves collaborations with several
other groups (both experimental and theoretical) within the focus
program. This position is offered at the postdoctoral level, only.
Position 3 -- Coupled and Competing Instabilities in Complex
Oxides. Using a combination of electronic structure and
phenomenological theories we will explore the competition and
cooperation between structural, electronic, superconducting,
ferroelectric and magnetic instabilities in transition metal oxides,
with a particular focus on perovskite-structure titanates. Our aim
is to understand the mechanism of possibly exotic superconductivity
and related functionalities in these materials, as well as how to
optimize and control the behaviors with external perturbations such
as light. This project is in collaboration with the group of Sasha
Balatsky at Nordita in Stockholm, Sweden. A background / interest in
both many-body physics and electronic structure theory is desirable.
Position 4 -- Advanced Electronic Structure Methods for defects
in transition-metal oxides. This position is at the
intersection between two focus areas in the group: (i) Understanding
the interplay between defect chemistry, epitaxial strain, and
functionality in complex oxides, and (ii) Development of practical
beyond-DFT methods based on dynamical mean field theory (DMFT) to
describe correlated electrons. In this project we will explore the
applicability of DMFT methods for describing the often correlated
electrons associated with point defects. The work will involve
programming and code development, as well as basic physics and
application to materials problems. The project is part of the
Swiss-wide National Center for Competence in Research in Materials
Design, MARVEL http://nccr-marvel.ch
To apply please upload a letter of interest indicating which
position you are interested in and why, your CV and (where
applicable) publication list, and the names and email addresses of 2
references at the following web-site:
for PhD applicants:
https://apply.refline.ch/845721/4691/pub/1/index.html
for postdoc applicants:
https://apply.refline.ch/845721/4693/pub/1/index.html
For more details contact Nicola Spaldin nicola.spaldin-at-mat.ethz.ch
or Claude Ederer claude.ederer-at-mat.ethz.ch. More information about
the Materials Theory group can be found at
http://www.theory.mat.ethz.ch
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Prof. Nicola Spaldin
Chair, Materials Theory
ETH Zurich
HIT G43.3
Wolfgang-Pauli-Strasse 27
8093 Zurich, Switzerland
Tel: +41 (0)44 633 37 55
Fax: +41 (0)44 633 14 59
nicola.spaldin-at-mat.ethz.ch
http://www.theory.mat.ethz.ch
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