Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?: No

Offer Description

About the Project BESCAPE

BESCAPE ("Advanced Wide Bandgap-based Power Processing and Management for Future Space Exploration") is a Horizon Europe MSCA Doctoral Network Joint Doctorate (DN-JD) initiative developed in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and leading European space companies.

The project addresses emerging challenges in power conversion, advanced control, and power distribution systems for future human space exploration missions.

BESCAPE brings together a highly international consortium comprising 11 Doctoral Candidates (DCs) distributed across leading European universities and research institutions. The academic beneficiaries include Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM, Spain), Universiteit Twente (UT, The Netherlands), Universidad de Oviedo (UNIOVI, Spain), KU Leuven (KU Leuven, Belgium), Université de Mons (UMONS, Belgium), Ghent University (UGent, Belgium), Università degli Studi di Padova (UNIPD, Italy), and Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche (UMH, Spain). These academic partners collaborate closely with space-sector stakeholders, including the European Space Agency (ESA, The Netherlands), Leonardo S.p.A. (Leonardo, Italy), IMEC (Belgium), Thales Alenia Space Belgium (TAS-B, Belgium), OHB System AG (OHB, Germany), and CRISA-AIRBUS (Spain), creating a unique research and training environment that combines academic excellence with industrial and space-sector expertise.

The Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) offers 1 fully funded PhD position "Wireless battery charging Unit for future space missions: drones and rovers"

Host Institution: Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM)

Supervisors: from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM, Spain).

Joint Degree Partner: Université de Mons (UMONS, Belgium).

Industrial Mentors: European Space Agency - ESA (The Netherlands)

Objective: This project aims to advance wireless power transfer technologies for future space missions. The selected candidate will design innovative wireless charging solutions, including universal transmitting coils and advanced control techniques, to enable reliable and efficient charging of autonomous vehicles such as drones and rovers.

Secondments:

• ESA (during 3 months): training on the needs and challenges for the Wireless Power technology applied to the coming Space exploration missions.
• UMONS (during 6 Months): Advanced training in wireless power transfer converter topologies, control techniques, and and to follow the PhD courses from UMONS for the Joint Degree.

Where to apply

E-mail: gestion.etsii.ceimm@upm.es

Requirements

Research Field: Engineering

Education Level: Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications:

We are looking for highly motivated candidates with a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Physics, or related disciplines.

Experience in power electronics, modelling and design of magnetic components, energy conversion, modelling and control of power converters, simulation and programming tools (e.g. MATLAB, Simulink, Python), or related research areas will be considered an advantage.

Strong analytical skills, a research-oriented mindset, and excellent communication skills in English are highly valued.

Specific Requirements:

MSCA Eligibility Criteria

1. Candidates must not have resided or carried out their main activity in Spain for more than 12 months during the 36 months immediately prior to recruitment.
2. Candidates must not already possess a doctoral degree.
3. Candidates must meet admission requirements for the PhD programs at UPM and University of Mons (UMONS).
4. Nationality: Open to candidates of any nationality from around the world.

Languages: English

Level: Excellent

Research Field: Engineering » Electronic engineering; Engineering » Electrical engineering

Years of Research Experience: 1 - 4

Additional Information

Benefits

Double / Joint PhD Degree

Successful candidates will obtain a joint doctoral degree awarded by UPM and UMONS.

International Training Programme

Joining BESCAPE offers a unique opportunity to develop a PhD within an international network involving leading universities, ESA, and major European space companies.

Candidates will benefit from:

• International secondments at ESA and leading European institutions.
• Participation in specialized BESCAPE Summer Schools and training events.
• Collaboration with internationally recognized researchers and industry experts.
• Competitive MSCA funding package including Living, Mobility, and Family Allowances (where applicable).
• Full employment contract and social security coverage under Spanish legislation.

Salary & Financial Conditions

The position is funded by the Horizon Europe MSCA Doctoral Networks programme through the BESCAPE project (Grant Agreement No. 101312786). The position is funded by the European Union’s MSCA program and includes a competitive salary composed of a Living Allowance (adjusted by the country correction coefficient), a Mobility Allowance, and, if applicable, a Family Allowance.

Gross Salary before deductions: 39593.70€ per year.

Eligibility criteria

Recruitment will be conducted in accordance with the principles of the Open, Transparent and Merit-Based Recruitment (OTM-R) policy of the European Commission, ensuring equal opportunities, fairness, transparency, and selection based solely on candidates’ qualifications, skills, and merits. The selection process will ensure equal opportunities and non-discrimination and will be based exclusively on the candidates' qualifications, skills, experience and potential.

Experience will be valued in:

1. Knowledge and experience in power electronics (10%)
2. Design and optimization of power supplies. (10%)
3. Modelling, design and optimization of high frequency magnetic components (25%)
4. Modelling and control of power converters (10%)
5. Skilled in modelling, simulation and programming (e.g. MATLAB, Python, ANSYS, Comsol, FEA tools etc.) (25%)
6. Sufficient training and experience for the optimal performance of the described tasks. (10%)
7. Good communication skills; critical and creative mindset, able to formulate your own research questions; excellent proficiency in English (speaking, listening and writing) (10%)

Required Documents

Candidates must submit their application by email to gestion.etsii.ceimm@upm.es and s.carrazoni@upm.es before the deadline. It must be attached the following documentation:

1. Detailed Curriculum Vitae (CV).
2. Academic transcripts (BSc and MSc).
3. Contact details of two academic referees.

Additional comments

This position is funded by the Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Networks programme through the BESCAPE project (Grant Agreement No. 101312786).

Candidates must comply with all Horizon Europe and MSCA eligibility requirements.

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available: 1

Company/Institute: Centro de Electrónica Industrial y Sistemas Multimodales (CEIMM)

Country: Spain

State/Province: Madrid

City: Madrid

Postal Code: 28006

Street: José Gutierrez Abascal, 2

Contact

State/Province: Madrid

City: Madrid

Website: https://www.cei.upm.es/

Street: C/ Ramiro de Maeztu, 7

Postal Code: 28040

E-Mail: gestion.etsii.ceimm@upm.es