PhD Studentship: Self-organising Nanoscale Swimming Devices

Nanoscale catalytic swimming devices have the potential to enable new methods for drug delivery, micro-fluidic medical diagnosis, nanoscale assembly and environmental remediation. However, in order to realise these goals, the devices will ideally be able to autonomously self-organise into useful spatial arrangements. Recently, theoretical predictions have shown that the complex chemical and hydrodynamic interactions between individual devices can lead to such self-organisation behaviour. The goal of this PhD studentship is to conduct experiments to investigate this proposed phenomenon. This approach has connections to biology and robotics: successful devices will mimic the collective behaviour of organisms ranging from bacteria to birds, and provide a parallel to much larger cooperative robots.

The PhD student will be trained in a wide range of skills to enable the behaviour of interacting catalytic swimming devices to be observed and systematically investigated. The student will make swimming devices and microfluidic apparatus, a process that involves colloidal synthesis and lithographic methods used in the semi-conductor industry. The student will gain extensive experience in using optical microscopy to track the motion of the devices, and learn how to use Labview software to perform image analysis, a transferable skill valued in industry.

The studentship will also offer the chance to gain experience of laser particle tracking methods. The student will be given the opportunity to disseminate scientific data at UK and International conferences, and become an active member of the world-wide research community working in this area. The overall skillset that the successful candidate will gain during the studentship will be highly relevant to employers in high-tech sectors such as bio-pharmaceutics and microfluidics, and can also pave the way to establishing an academic career in these sectors.

The Student will join a team at Sheffield University, working to develop the UK research profile in the Swimming Device area, and the studentship will supported by a strong network of multi-disciplinary collaborators, within the University of Sheffield and leading research groups in the UK, Europe and USA.

The Studentship will be primarily laboratory based; however the ability to interpret results in the light of theory and simulations will also be cultivated.

Note: This Studentship (includes stipend and fees) is only available for UK applicant.

For more information contact: s.ebbens@sheffield.ac.uk

Funding Notes

The successful candidate will be graduating with an excellent degree in Chemistry, Physics or a related discipline, (2.1 minimum). During their degree they will have demonstrated the ability to work effectively in the laboratory, and have displayed a strong interest in areas relevant to the PhD program such as Materials Science, Polymers and Nanotechnology. Applicants with additional Masters or equivalent level experience in these disciplines are particularly encouraged.