PhD Opportunities in Physics in Switzerland

Doctoral research in structural dynamics and hybrid construction This doctoral project at the ZHAW Institute of Building Technology and Process investigates structural dynamics and vibration mitigation in hybrid steel–timber buildings. The research addresses how building components and connections behave under dynamic loads, with the goal of supporting safer, more comfortable and resource-efficient construction. The doctoral student will review research on vibrations in hybrid steel–timber struc...

The University of Zurich is advertising more than 25 fully funded PhD positions across a broad range of research areas. The opportunities are based in Zurich, Switzerland, and are offered as paid positions rather than as a single scholarship programme. Fields represented in the listings include life sciences, medicine, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, astrophysics, and the social sciences and humanities. The breadth of the call may suit applicants seeking doctoral research in biomedical an...

The Laboratory for Quantum Magnetism (LQM) at EPFL offers a PhD project in experimental quantum magnetism focused on microwave spectroscopy of rare-earth quantum magnets. The project explores how electronic and nuclear degrees of freedom become entangled, how electro-nuclear states evolve under external magnetic fields, and how their occupancy can be manipulated by external perturbations. Research will be carried out in a laboratory environment that combines synthesis of novel materials with in-...

This PhD project is part of VERTICAF (Vertical Africa: Visualizing Urban Change, Negotiating Power, Designing Sustainable Cities) , a comparative research initiative on urban verticalization in African cities. Based at EPFL Lausanne and linked to partnerships with the Universities of Dakar, Kigali, and Luanda, the project examines how cities in Africa are changing through vertical growth and what this means for urban futures. The doctoral researcher will focus on developing and applying methods ...

This PhD project at EPFL’s SCI-ENAC-AS group, Nanotechnology for Solar Energy Conversion , focuses on the numerical modeling and design of plasmonic crystals for solar-energy-related applications. The advertised research is part of the SNSF project “Coupled oscillations in plasmonic crystals” , which investigates how plasmonic oscillations couple in metallic micro- and nanostructures. The project aims to understand and potentially engineer plasmonic crystals with broad frequency bands of extraor...

ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE at the Department of Architecture, ETH Zurich, invites applications for two doctoral researcher positions in the SNSF-funded project “From Homes to Habitats – Swiss Housing Cooperatives as Agents of Socio-Ecological Transition.” The project investigates how housing cooperatives in Switzerland can support more sustainable ways of living. It moves beyond their established role in providing affordable housing to examine innovative social, spatial, and ecological practices a...

This PhD position is hosted at EPFL’s STI IGM LAMD in Neuchatel and is part of the TurboImpact project, a Horizon Europe MSCA Doctoral Network focused on advancing the design, optimization, materials selection, and manufacturing of small-scale turbomachinery. The project addresses a broad set of technical challenges relevant to compact machines used in heat pumps, fuel cells, organic Rankine cycles, and gas turbines. Within this network, the doctoral researcher will contribute to research on mul...

The University of Zurich is advertising PhD student and postdoctoral opportunities in high-throughput vibrational spectroscopy of protein dynamics , based in Zurich, Switzerland. The project centers on developing or applying high-throughput vibrational spectroscopy to investigate how proteins move, change conformation, and function. The research sits at the intersection of spectroscopy, biophysics, molecular science, and protein dynamics, offering an opportunity to work with advanced spectroscop...

The University of Basel is offering a fully funded PhD position in molecular microbiology within the Biozentrum’s Knut Drescher Research Group in Switzerland. The research focuses on bacterial biofilms and their roles in infection biology. The doctoral project will involve investigating bacterial communities using transcriptomics, bacterial genetics and confocal microscopy. This combination of approaches offers training in molecular microbiology, microbial genetics, imaging and infection-focused...