Research Associate in Quantum Sensor Nanofabrication

Company description:

University of Sheffield

Job description:

Are you a skilled micro/nanofabrication specialist looking to apply your cleanroom expertise to build quantum sensors for a groundbreaking ecological application? We have an exciting opportunity in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering for you to join a new ARIA-funded project, playing a central role in developing chip-scale quantum technology for environmental and ecosystem intervention.

We are seeking an ambitious Research Associate who will take ownership of fabrication-focused work from the outset, fabricating, packaging, and characterising photonic-integrated quantum sensor chips as part of a pioneering "magnetobiotics" platform. This interdisciplinary project combines chip-integrated quantum magnetometers with magnetically-labelled microbes to enable a new paradigm for ecosystem interventions: the ability to deploy, track, and recover biocontrol agents with magnetic precision.

You will design and fabricate the photonic sensor arrays at the heart of the platform, working hands-on with e-beam lithography, thin-film deposition, photolithography, and etching in world-class cleanroom facilities. You will package the sensor into a robust testbed for use with ecological samples and characterise its performance against magnetic backgrounds in water, soil, and sand. Collaborating with researchers at Queen Mary University of London, you will integrate the sensor with microbial tracking and recovery experiments targeting the deadly amphibian chytrid fungus, a pathogen that has driven over 500 species into decline.

We are looking for a candidate with a PhD (or close to completion, or equivalent experience) and strong hands-on cleanroom fabrication experience. You should have a track record designing and fabricating micro/nanophotonic or microelectronic devices. Experience with quantum sensing or NV-centre magnetometry is advantageous, but we strongly encourage versatile fabrication specialists who are excited to work at the intersection of semiconductor technology and ecology to apply.

The role offers the chance to shape a new research capability from an early stage and to work in close connection with advanced semiconductor infrastructure and a highly collaborative research environment.

If you are motivated to translate fabrication expertise into real-world impact, we would love to hear from you.

The School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE) belongs to the prestigious Faculty of Engineering. We are one of the largest academic communities of engineers in the UK, ranked joint 1st for Research Environment in the last Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021)! Our specific field (EEE) is also ranked very highly, which is a marker of our excellence and ambition (QS 2024: 11th in UK, The Guardian 2024: 3rd, The Times Higher 2024: 7th in the UK).

We are home to several national institutes and centres, for example:

• The National Epitaxy Facility,
• The National 6G Radio Systems Facility,
• Rolls-Royce Control, Monitoring and Systems Engineering University Technology Centre.

We strive to conduct fundamental research and innovation to address global challenges, as well as support the education of the next generation of engineers.

The University of Sheffield is a remarkable and inclusive place to work. Our people are at the heart of everything we do. Their diverse backgrounds, abilities and beliefs make Sheffield a world-class university.

We offer a fantastic range of benefits including a generous annual leave entitlement (with the ability to purchase more), a generous pension scheme, flexible working opportunities, a commitment to your development and wellbeing, a wide range of retail discounts, and much more.

Find out more at www.sheffield.ac.uk/ benefits and join us to become part of something special.

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