Research Fellow in Heterogeneous Material Integrated MEMS/NEMS-Photonics (HetMEPS)

You will join our team and work with Dr Yoshishige Tsuchiya and Dr Jun-Yu(Bruce) Ou on an EPSRC Project Heterogeneous Material Integrated MEMS/NEMS-Photonics Platform for Secure Communication (HetMEPS). Your primary role will be to work on the fabrication, design, and characterisation of integrated Quantum Photonics systems on a chip.

About HetMEPS

This Japan-UK collaboration will establish a novel heterogeneous material integrated MEMS/NEMS-Photonics platform for highly secure ICT hardware, reducing energy consumption significantly.

The lead applicant Tokyo Tech team has strong expertise in Si photonics and material integration technology, while Southampton can provide the state-of-the-art MEMS, NEMS, and Metasurface technologies. Starting from the development of individual MEMS/NEMS-integrated photonics components, novel photonic integrated circuits (PICs) for secure communication will be demonstrated. The laboratory-level development will be combined with a large-scale wafer process with industrial-level uniformity and spatial resolution by using the pilot 300-mm semiconductor process line available in collaboration with AIST. Metasurface-empowered optical cryptography scheme with reconfigurable functionality will be demonstrated for the first time on a chip, taking semiconductor photonics technology to the next level. The project will also contribute to the new development of a tunable single photon source, leading to the improvement of quantum random number generators, which are a key module for quantum secure communication. The ambition of the project is to initiate a new research field of on-chip optical secure communication and consequently take semiconductor research to the next level, with translation to industry in Japan and the UK.

The role

Within HetMEPS, your specific task will be to develop a photonic circuit integrated nano-electromechanical system (NEMS) and optical NEMS devices for secure/quantum communications. You will work at the School of Electronics and Computer Science (School of Electronics and Computer Science | University of Southampton, top UK electronic and electrical engineering research) in a project team focused on delivering the next-generation photonic devices for secure/quantum communications. You will have access to our state-of-the-art cleanroom facilities (Zepler Cleanrooms | University of Southampton), and be led by a team of world-leading experts in nanomechanics and nanophotonics.

About you

You will have a PhD or equivalent professional qualifications and experience in an experimental discipline, ideally with experience in quantum photonic circuits, quantum correlation measurement, NEMS, optical NEMS, characterisation, and nanofabrication, along with their practical implementation.

To informally discuss the position, contact Dr Yoshishige Tsuchiya (yt2@ecs.soton.ac.uk) and Dr Bruce(Jun-Yu) Ou (bruce.ou@soton.ac.uk). Please quote the advert reference in all correspondence.

Application

Apply by uploading your CV and a cover letter detailing how your skills and experience match the requirements of the role.