Spatiotemporal light fields

About the Project

Supervisory Team: Dr Nikitas Papasimakis and Prof. Nikolay Zheludev

Recent discoveries of exotic forms of light, structured in space and in time, promise novel ways of transferring information, delivering energy, and even manipulating matter. The project will focus on the generation, light-matter interactions, and applications of spatiotemporally structured electromagnetic waves.

Recent breakthroughs in our ability to control the spatial and temporal properties of light have opened exciting new frontiers in optical science. Unlike conventional light waves, spatiotemporally structured electromagnetic fields exhibit particle-like topological features, rapid local field fluctuations, and non-trivial propagation dynamics. These unique characteristics hold transformative potential across a wide range of disciplines, including telecommunications, advanced manufacturing, spectroscopy, and metrology.

This project will investigate the generation, detection, and application of spatiotemporally structured light fields.

It will develop generation and detection schemes employing engineered metasurfaces, as well as heuristic methods inspired by topological and symmetry considerations.

Particular emphasis will be placed on understanding the light–matter interactions of spatiotemporal light fields with complex nanostructures.

By exploiting such exotic light-matter interactions, the project will aim to develop resilient and encrypted modes of information transfer and novel spectroscopic techniques.

References:

• Nat. Communications 12, 5891 (2021)
• Nat. Photon. 16, 523–528 (2022)
• Nat. Communications 15, 4863 (2024)

You will have opportunity to develop advanced skills in:

• experimental photonics
• computational electromagnetic modelling
• application of machine learning and AI
• electron and optical microscopy
• nanofabrication

Entry requirements

You must have a 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent.

Fees and funding

Full scholarships include tuition fees, a stipend at the UKRI rate plus 10% ORC enhancement tax-free per annum for up to 3.5 years (totalling £22,858 for 2025/26, rising annually) and a budget of £4200 for things like conference travel. UK, EU and Horizon Europe students are eligible for scholarships.

Chinese Scholarship Council (CSC) students are eligible for fee waivers.

Funding for other international applicants is very limited and highly competitive. Overseas students who have secured or are seeking external funding are welcome to apply.

How to apply

Apply now

You need to:

• choose programme type (Research), 2026/27, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences
• select Full time or Part time
• search for programme PhD ORC (7097)
• add name of the supervisor in section 2 of the application

Applications should include:

• your CV (resumé)
• 2 academic references
• degree transcripts and certificates to date
• English language qualification (if applicable)

Contact us

Project leader

If you wish to discuss any details of the project informally, please email Dr Nikitas Papasimakis (n.papasimakis@soton.ac.uk).