Tag: PhD position

The NZ Astrostatistics and General Relativity Group (NZ Gravity) is coordinating applications for several PhD scholarships within an interdisciplinary team to work on 
•   interstellar objects, stellar populations, supernovae, large scale structure formation and ultralight dark matter, engaging with the Vera Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) and  
•  gravitational wave astronomy and statistical data analysis for the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission.

The cross-institutional research team spans astrophysics, cosmology, mathematics and statistics with members at five New Zealand universities as well as international collaborators within the Vera Rubin Observatory and the International LISA Consortium.

The LSST is a ten-year, wide-field astronomical survey designed to image the entire southern sky every few nights using a 3.2 gigapixel camera, creating a massive 200-petabyte dataset for studying dark energy and dark matter, mapping the Milky Way, exploring the transient optical sky, and identifying potentially hazardous near-Earth asteroids. The space-based gravitational wave mission LISA raises deep challenges regarding source modelling and numerical simulation and requires new statistical methodologies. We are seeking highly motivated and skilled students with a strong background in statistics, physics, mathematics or a related discipline, with sound computing skills and a keen interest in interdisciplinary research in gravitational wave science. All PhD and MSc candidates will have the opportunity to join the NZ Gravity Group, obtain academic support from an interdisciplinary supervisory team and will contribute to cutting-edge research for the LSST and the LISA mission. The PhD scholarships will be available from May 2026 and provide an annual (tax-free) stipend of NZ$35,000 plus tuition fees for three years. Starting dates are flexible throughout the year.

PhD Projects

• A Census of Stellar Remnants
• Bayesian strategies for noise modelling and estimation of the stochastic
  gravitational wave background with LISA
• Deep Learning for Corrupted Gravitational-Wave Time Series in LISA
• Gravitational Waves From The Early Universe
• Interstellar Objects

More details about each of the PhD projects including the required skillsets and supervisors can be found here. Admissions decisions will be made by individual universities – please direct initial enquiries to the supervisors of specific projects that interest you or send general queries to
Professor Richard Easther (R.Easther(at)auckland.ac.nz) and
Professor Renate Meyer (Renate.Meyer(at)auckland.ac.nz).

A PhD position is available at the ARTEMIS Laboratory, Nice, France, in collaboration with Laboratoire d'Annecy de Physique des Particules (LAPP), Annecy, France.
PhD position, Experimental optics and Simulation for Scattered Light Metrology.

This PhD project aims to develop an instrument for identifying the optical components in Virgo’s benches responsible for stray light.

The project is led by Frederic Cleva, Eleonora Polini, and Marie Anne Bizouard at the ARTEMIS Laboratory, and Michal Was at LAPP. Please direct any questions you might have to frederic.cleva(at)oca.eu.

Please submit your application by April 30 2026.

A full description of the project, and instructions for applying for the position, can be found here.

The Institute of Astrophysics at the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (IA-FORTH) invites applications for several PhD positions broadly on supermassive black hole binaries to work in Dr Maria Charisi’s group, funded by the ERC Starting Grant MMMonsters. MMMonsters aims to detect supermassive black hole binaries using electromagnetic (time-domain) and gravitational-wave (PTA) data and the combination of the two. Application deadline: April 15 2026.

Applicants who can connect their previous research to the objectives of MMMonsters are encouraged to apply, but all applications will be considered equally. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to join international collaborations (NANOGrav, EPTA, IPTA collaborations, the LSST AGN Collaboration and the LISA Consortium) and will benefit from extensive networking and mentoring opportunities.

The position comes with competitive salary, a generous travel package, and opportunities to spend extended research visitsi n the US.The expected start date is in the Fall of 2026. The group and IA-FORTH are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion, encourages applications from women and underrepresented minorities, and supports a flexible and family-friendly work environment.

Candidates must have a Master’s in astronomy, physics or a related field by the time of the appointment. Applicants should send to mmmonsters.phd@gmail.com: (1) a cover letter (1-2 pages), (2) unofficial transcripts with grades of Master’s & Bachelor’s courses (3) a CV including publications (if any). (4) They should also arrange for two recommendation letters to be sent directly to the same email address by the deadline. For more information, please contact Dr. Charisi directly at maria.charisi(at)ia.forth.gr

IA-FORTH is a premier research institute in Greece. Founded in 2019, it provides an international and dynamic research environment with 10 permanent researchers, 11 postdocs and 18 PhD students. Its members perform cutting-edge research in a variety of topics including supermassive black holes (Charisi, Cassadio, Liodakis, Papadakis, Pavlidou), compact objects and pulsar timing (Antoniadis, Reig, Zezas), and galaxy evolution (Charmandaris, Diaz-Santos, Tassis). IA currently hosts three additional ERC grants led by Dr. Cassadio (radio observations of quasars), Dr Liodakis (multi-wavelength polarization of supermassive black holes) and Prof Pavlidou (cartography of the Milky Way) and an ERA chair in Astro-informatics led by Dr Starck (CEA/Saclay, France). IA-FORTH also manages the Skinakas Observatory with 3 small and medium-size telescopes, located at an altitude of 1750m just 60km from the Institute.

IA-FORTH boasts a tight-knit and inclusive community, which fosters close collaborations among the different groups, and is committed to the professional development of its early-career members. The institute has established collaborative links with leading institutes in the US, such as Caltech, NASA/JPL, CfA/Harvard, Vanderbilt, UC Berkeley, Stanford, as well as in Europe including CEA/Saclay and Obs. de Paris (France), MPE, MPP and MPIfR (Germany), and Cambridge (UK).

IA-FORTH is located in Heraklion, a vibrant medium-sized city in Crete. Located in the biggest island of Greece with international visitors throughout the year, it maintains a very well-connected airport, phenomenal food scene (with plenty high-end restaurants) and a strong cultural identity with multi-cultural influences and historical gems. It is also surrounded by magnificent nature, beaches and mountains, with year-round outdoor activities.

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The University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy) and Aix-Marseille University (France) welcome applications for a joint PhD scholarship in gravitational-wave astronomy. The application deadline is April 17th, 2026 (noon CEST) for positions starting in Fall 2026.

We are seeking highly motivated candidates to join our research in black-hole binary dynamics, gravitational-wave data analysis, and cosmology. Both Milano-Bicocca and Aix-Marseille host large gravitational-wave groups; candidates will benefit from both research environments as well as their broad network of external collaborators.

This joint position will be supervised by Davide Gerosa at Milano-Bicocca and Michele Mancarella at Aix-Marseille. The selected candidate is expected to spend approximately two years in Milan and one year in Marseille, although this arrangement is flexible.

Applications should be submitted through Milano-Bicocca using the link above. The PhD admission program includes several “open scholarships”, covering all research areas in the department (including ours), for which all applicants are automatically considered. Candidates interested in this joint position should explicitly indicate their interest by selecting the “project scholarship” number PROG.5, titled “Interpreting gravitational-wave data with modern inference techniques.”

For more information on our research groups, see www.davidegerosa.com/group and www.cpt.univ-mrs.fr/~mancarella.

Please find here full details and how to apply.

This PhD project focuses on the fabrication and experimental demonstration of a mechanical oscillator whose motion is limited by the quantum radiation-pressure noise from a laser beam.  Application deadline: April 26th 2026. 

The oscillator will consist of an ultra-light mirror, with a mass of approximately 100 mg, suspended as a microscopic pendulum by two fused-silica fibers thinner than a human hair. The mirror will be integrated into a suspended optical cavity designed to enhance the quantum fluctuations of the laser field. The motion of the mirror will be measured with high precision using dedicated techniques. After demonstrating quantum-noise-limited motion, the system will serve as a platform to demonstrate novel methods for surpassing quantum noise limits in optical measurements.

The PhD candidate will play an active role in the fabrication of the suspended mirror using the Artemis laboratory’s dedicated facilities. This work includes pulling ultra-thin fused-silica fibers, welding them to a custom mirror substrate, and characterizing their thermal noise. Initial fabrication results are expected to happen within the first year of project and lead to a first publication.

The second phase of the thesis will focus on assembling the suspended optical cavity, measuring the thermal-noise properties of the mirror, and optimizing the system for quantum-noise sensing experiments.

Throughout the project, the student will acquire strong experimental skills essential to modern precision physics, including optical alignment, cavity design and control, laser frequency stabilization, feedback electronics, vacuum technology, quantum-noise modeling, and low-noise detection techniques. The outcomes of this research are directly relevant to high-precision measurement technologies, including next-generation gravitational-wave detectors and the generation of strong bright squeezed light.

The student will be based at the Artemis laboratory, located at the Mont-Gros site of the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur in Nice, France. He/She will work within the Lasers and Cavities group and benefit from close supervision by permanent researchers, as well as support in mechanical and electronic engineers. The candidate will join an internationally connected research environment, contribute to publications, present results at conferences, and participate in the Einstein Telescope collaboration.

Keywords
Optomechanics, Pendulum mirror, Bright squeezing, Quantum noise Mitigation

Profile and skills required
The candidate should hold a Master’s degree in Physics, with a solid background in optics. Experience in experimental physics is highly desirable but not strictly required. We seek a candidate with a strong motivation to develop hands-on laboratory skills and that can work well in autonomy within a team.

Please find here full details.

Expressions of interest are invited for PhD Fellowships in Particle Astrophysics and Multi-messenger Astrophysics to be held within the AstroNu Group led by Prof. Tamborra at the Niels Bohr International Academy and DARK. The foreseen appointment is for a fixed period of three years with a starting date in fall 2026. Application deadline May 1st 2026.

We seek highly motivated, outstanding individuals eager to join an ambitious research program at the intersection of particle astrophysics, nuclear astrophysics, transient astrophysics, and multi-messenger astrophysics. Preliminary expertise in neutrino transport, (magneto)hydrodynamic simulations of astrophysical sources, nucleosynthesis, particle acceleration in astrophysical sources, modeling of multi-messenger emission from cosmic sources, and/or high-performance computing will be considered valuable assets.

The Niels Bohr International Academy is a young initiative committed to fostering the traditions of internationalism, interdisciplinarity and excellence in physics, which characterize the Niels Bohr Institute. It functions as a primary center for fundamental research including theoretical and computational astrophysics, particle astrophysics, gravitational physics, high energy particle physics, quantum physics, and biophysics. Areas of research of the DARK Center at the Niels Bohr Institute include, but are not limited to: observations, multi-messenger transient astronomy, high-redshift galaxies, dark matter and dark energy, black holes, and cosmic dust.

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the diversity of society and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates regardless of personal background. The primary criterion for the evaluation of candidates is the excellence of their track record and future promise.
To guarantee full consideration, the requested material should be uploaded before May 1, 2026. For inquiries, kindly write at nbia(at)nbi.ku.dk, with email subject “PhD Fellowship in Particle Astrophysics and Multi-messenger Astrophysics, UCPH-NBIA-PHD_RFNU.”

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This PhD studentship offers the chance to develop an ambitious research project at the interface of theory and experiment in gravitational-wave physics and cosmology. Working closely with experienced faculty, the student will explore fundamental questions about the Early Universe and the dark sector, which together shape most of the cosmos we observe today. Many of the most compelling models in these areas predict stochastic backgrounds of gravitational waves—signals that may be detected by current and next-generation experiments. Applcation deadline: April 6th 2026.

The successful candidate will:

• Develop and test theoretical models of the Early Universe and dark sector physics.
• Make quantitative predictions for gravitational-wave signals.
• Connect theory with observational or simulated data from leading international collaborations.

Through active mentorship and collaboration, the student will have the opportunity to engage with major international projects, including Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA), Einstein Telescope, Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO), and NANOGrav. This involvement will enable the student to become part of vibrant, international research teams at the forefront of discovery.

This is an outstanding opportunity for a motivated student to contribute to some of the most exciting questions in modern physics, gain high-level research training, and build an international scientific profile in a rapidly advancing field.

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The University of Stavanger invites applications for a PhD Fellowship in Physics or Computer Science within the LISA gravitational-wave mission. Application deadline: April 9th, 2026.

The University of Stavanger invites applications for a PhD Fellowship in Physics or Computer Science within the LISA gravitational-wave mission.

The PhD candidate will work on one or both of the following research areas, depending on their background and interests:

• Development and deployment of Norway’s computational facility for the LISA ground segment.
• Development and implementation of global-fit components for analyzing the stochastic gravitational-wave background within the LISA Framework

The work will be carried out within the LISA team of the University of Stavanger in tight collaboration with the international LISA groups.

The position is offered under the standard Norwegian state-employee contract, providing excellent working conditions and benefits.

Details on the job description, contract and other relevant information can be found on the application portal (link).

Contact: Nardini, Germano (for the scientific aspects of the fellowship) (germano.nardini(at)uis.no); Rosa C. Andrade (for the formal and technical aspects of the application)aspects of the position) (rosa.c.andrade(at)uis.no)

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