Research Fellow in Hyperuniform Disordered Materials

University of Southampton - Photonic Systems Circuits & Sensors Group

Location: Southampton

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746

Hours: Full Time

Contract Type: Fixed-Term/Contract

Placed On: 26th March 2026

Closes: 15th April 2026

Job Ref: 3375226BA

You will join our team at the Optoelectronics Research Centre and work on the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council funded project HyMeta: Hyperuniform Disordered Metasurfaces for Selective Absorbers. Your primary role will be to undertake theoretical and computational research on hyperuniform disordered photonic materials for frequency-selective solar-thermal absorbers based on metal–dielectric–metal resonator platforms.

The project develops hyperuniform disordered metasurfaces, a novel class of photonic structures in which structural correlations are precisely controlled to achieve selective absorption of solar radiation and suppression of thermal emission, enabling highly efficient solar-thermal materials.

Your work will focus on the development of theoretical and computational models for light–matter interaction in hyperuniform disordered plasmonic structures, including electromagnetic modelling, optimisation of metal–dielectric–metal resonators, and physics-informed machine-learning approaches for inverse design of frequency-selective metasurfaces. You will also work closely with academic collaborators and industrial partners, contributing to joint research activities and scientific publications.

The position is fixed term until 31st August 2027, with a nominal start date of 15th May 2026.

To be successful you will hold a PhD* degree (either awarded or nearing completion) or equivalent experience in fields related to the project.

You should have substantial practical knowledge and experience in the following areas:

• nanophotonics
• disordered photonic materials
• electromagnetism in structured media
• computational electromagnetic modelling

Strong computational skills and experience with electromagnetic modelling methods including FDTD, FEM, and RCWA are essential as well as experience in developing bespoke electromagnetic simulation software and/or using commercial software including COMSOL Multiphysics and Ansys Lumerical using high-performance computing resources. Experience with machine-learning techniques and previous collaboration with experimental groups or industrial partners would also be advantageous.

You should be able to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team including theoretical, computational, experimental, and industrial researchers.

For an informal discussion about the position, please contact Prof Marian Florescu (m.florescu@soton.ac.uk).

Equality, diversity and inclusion are central to our ethos at the University of Southampton. We are committed to improving equality across science and engineering and welcome applications from candidates who support an inclusive research culture. We give full consideration to applicants wishing to work flexibly, including part-time, and due consideration will be given to applicants who have taken a career break.

The University of Southampton is a global top-100 university and home to world-leading photonics research. The Optoelectronics Research Centre provides a highly collaborative environment with access to advanced computational and experimental facilities.

Please upload your CV and a cover letter detailing how your skills and experience match the requirements of the role.

*subject to qualifying criteria

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and welcome applicants who supports our mission of inclusivity.