Publisher
source

Dave Phillips

1 week ago

PhD Studentship: Building the World's Most Advanced Polarisation-Resolved Nonlinear Microscope University of Exeter in United Kingdom

Degree Level

PhD

Field of study

Computer Science

Funding

Available

Deadline

Dec 8, 2026

Country flag

Country

United Kingdom

University

University of Exeter

Apply for this scholarship

Keywords

Computer Science
Biomedical Engineering
Materials Science
Biophysics
Biology
Structural Biology
Microscopy
Python Programming
Physics
ML

Suggested scholarships

Publisher
source

University of Warwick Warwick Medical School

Country flag

United Kingdom

PhD opportunity at Warwick Medical School for students interested in Physics , Biology , and Biophysics . The project focuses on developing artificial, cell-mimicking lipid vesicles to uncover the physical mechanisms that drive the development of zebrafish and other organisms. This is a strong fit for applicants who want to work at the interface of physical sciences and life sciences, with research themes spanning soft matter, membrane systems, developmental biology, and biomimetic models. The o...

Biomedical Engineering
Materials Science
Biophysics
+2 more

3 weeks ago

Publisher
source

Imperial College London

Country flag

United Kingdom

Imperial College London is advertising the President’s PhD Scholarships 2027–28 , a fully funded doctoral opportunity for outstanding graduates worldwide. The scholarship supports independent PhD research under the guidance of an academic supervisor at Imperial College London. Funding includes full PhD tuition fees , an annual stipend of £27,036 for living expenses, and £2,000 per year for research consumables during the first three years. Scholars also gain access to Imperial’s Early Career Res...

Computer Science
Chemistry
Biomedical Engineering
+4 more

1 month ago

Publisher
source

Imperial College London

Country flag

United Kingdom

Imperial College London is offering the President's PhD Scholarships for outstanding candidates seeking a PhD place with full funding. This is a highly competitive doctoral scholarship for talented applicants from Imperial, the UK, and worldwide, with no nationality restriction. The scholarship supports a research project of the student’s choosing, supervised by an Imperial academic supervisor. It is designed for candidates with strong academic performance and clear research potential across a w...

Computer Science
Chemistry
Environmental Science
+6 more

1 month ago

Publisher
source

Imperial College London

Country flag

United Kingdom

PhD Scholarship: AI-Driven Antibody and Protein Design, from Algorithm to Experiment at Imperial College London , Department of Chemical Engineering, with Dr Pietro Sormanni . The Sormanni Lab develops data-driven technologies for rational antibody design and protein design , combining artificial intelligence , laboratory directed evolution, and biophysics to create new or improved antibodies and proteins. The project offers two complementary directions: (1) methods development focused on comput...

Computer Science
Molecular Biology
Biomedical Engineering
+7 more

1 month ago

Publisher
source

University of Leeds

Country flag

United Kingdom

Leeds Doctoral Scholarship 2027 at the University of Leeds is a fully funded PhD opportunity open across all Faculties for Home fee-rated students. The scholarship supports up to 5 new postgraduate researchers for full-time or part-time doctoral study, with awards lasting 3.5 years full-time (pro-rata for part-time). Funding includes full academic fees and a maintenance grant of £21,805 in Session 2026/27 for full-time study, with the stipend increasing annually in line with the UKRI rate. Appli...

Chemistry
Biomedical Engineering
Materials Science
+4 more

1 week ago

About this position

[Fees plus a stipend of £21,805 per annum for 2026/7; funded by EPSRC.]

PhD Studentship at the University of Exeter in the Physics department on an ambitious project to build a polarisation-resolved nonlinear microscope with true 3D vectorial control of the focal field. This studentship is aimed at a candidate interested in advanced optical instrumentation, structured light, nonlinear microscopy, and the physics of biological tissue.

The project will focus on polarisation-resolved second-harmonic generation (pSHG), a fast, label-free nonlinear imaging method widely used for collagen imaging in living tissue. The central research challenge is to overcome the limitation of conventional pSHG, which is largely sensitive only to in-plane structure. By using a spatial light modulator to shape both wavefront and polarisation, the student will engineer a longitudinal z-polarised field in a high-numerical-aperture focus and use it to probe out-of-plane collagen fibrils. The result will be a novel microscope capable of revealing 3D collagen organisation in unprecedented detail.

The work combines optical design, microscope construction, hands-on alignment, vectorial focal-field modelling, and programming for instrument control and image analysis. The student will also engage with the Jones, Stokes, and Mueller formalisms, ultrafast nonlinear optics, and potentially machine-learning approaches to the inverse problem. The project is especially relevant to biophysics, biomechanics, and structural biology, since collagen architecture is central to tissue mechanics and disease progression.

Funding is provided by EPSRC and includes fees plus a stipend of £21,805 per annum for 2026/7. The application deadline is 8 December 2026. Interested applicants should apply via the University of Exeter funding page using the application link provided in the advert.

This is a strong opportunity for students with a background or interest in physics, optical engineering, biomedical imaging, and computational analysis who want to develop a cutting-edge research instrument and apply it to a major biological question.

Funding details

Available

What's required

Applicants should be prepared to work on an experimental PhD in physics/biophotonics with strong hands-on optics and programming components. Relevant skills and interests include optical design, microscope alignment, nonlinear optics, wavefront and polarisation shaping, vectorial modelling, and Python for instrument control and image analysis; machine-learning experience for inverse problems would be an advantage. No specific degree classification, language test, or formal prerequisite is stated in the post.

How to apply

Apply through the University of Exeter funding page using the provided application link. Prepare the required materials for the studentship and submit them before the deadline. Check the university page for any additional instructions or documents.

ApplyKite TwinLearns as you apply

Make your next move.

Prepare your application

Review drafts and confirm requirements with the provider.

Professors

Prof at University of Exeter

University Name
Country flag

United Kingdom

Research Interests

Computer Science

Microscopy

Biophysics

Biology

Materials Science