Lukas Wagner

Group Leader Lukas Wagner at Marburg University is recruiting a PhD student for predictive ageing of perovskite photovoltaics . The project sits at the intersection of Physics , Materials Science , Electrical Engineering , and Chemistry , with a strong sustainability angle. The research aims to answer one of the biggest open questions in perovskite solar cells: how long they last and how failure can be predicted. The group has developed a low-cost system that ages hundreds of solar cells in parallel under controlled stress at maximum power point (MPP). The PhD project will extend this with automated in operando measurements during ageing, including fast current-voltage sweeps and time-resolved, multispectral photoluminescence imaging. The goal is to build a dataset large enough to identify early signatures of failure and understand why cells degrade. The post is suitable for a motivated candidate who is persistent, curious, and interested in measurement electronics and semiconductor behaviour. Prior experience with perovskites is not required; the techniques can be learned. The group describes itself as young, growing, and well equipped, with room for independent ideas. The announcement also explicitly encourages women to apply. This is a PhD opening in Marburg, Germany. Applications are accepted until 13 September 2026 via the online portal only. If you are finishing later in the winter or are unsure whether you fit, the group leader invites you to get in touch anyway.