PhD Studentship: Stranger Things: Self-Powered Sensing for Microclimate Observations Within a Forest Ecosystem

Many organisms live in environments where microclimatic conditions differ substantially from those measured by weather stations. Since they are close to the ground or the surface of vegetation, temperatures are influenced strongly by radiative fluxes. Reliable estimation of microclimatic conditions is key to understanding how ecosystems function and is essential for predicting the ecological consequences of climate change and pest invasions.

The key aim of this project is to design appropriate hardware that will enable the implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT) within forest ecosystems. IoT is primarily based on deploying robust self-powered sensing nodes, forming a network for data collection and transmission to establish a detailed picture of the microclimate within the ecosystem. The proposed research will develop a self-powered sensing node hardware (for microclimate observations within a forest ecosystem) that comprises a bespoke energy harvester (electromagnetic or piezoelectric) integrated with sensors. The node will be autonomous, and self-sustained with marginal human involvement.

Funding

The studentship is funded for 3.5 years starting from October 2023 and provides a tax-free stipend of £17,668 per annum (in 2022/23) for the duration of the studentship plus tuition fees at the UK/EU rate (£4,596 in 2022/23) and a Research Training Support Grant (RTSG) of £8,000.

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