Apply to be part of a Horizon Europe Pathfinder science-to-technology breakthrough, targeting a paradigm shift in fabricating a novel optically active crystal – rare-earth (RE) doped sapphire (REDS). The EIC-funded project’s objective is to enhance laser technology performance through creating functionalised REDS thin-disks as new optical components for innovative-lasers applications. We’re looking for an enthusiastic postdoctoral fellow to be part of our team to advance our electron-beam lithography and plasma etch technology, ultimately develop a layer of amplified spontaneous emission mitigation (ASE) nanostructures on a new class of active mirror to underpin the next generation of thin-disk lasers.

What You’ll Do:

• Innovate: develop scalable electron-beam lithography processes to fabricate ASE mitigation photonic nanostructures on sapphire or equivalent substrates
• Collaborate: work with a dynamic team and engage in interdisciplinary research
• Experiment: gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge electron-beam lithography and plasma etch fabrication techniques, laser characterisations, and honing your practical skills
• Explore: help develop a deeper understanding of how to produce high-quality ASE mitigation nanostructures integrated to REDS crystals and scale to practical dimensions.

We’re seeking a capable and resourceful postdoctoral candidate eager to dive into laboratory work to develop high-resolution pattern transfer and microfabrication methods to create these novel optically active sapphire elements. You’ll have a solid grounding in physical sciences with an eagerness to understand and solve key challenges. You are a self-starter, able to organise own research activities effectively who is able to plan and justify focus on extensive research that will result in impactful outputs. The successful candidate will have an ability to clearly document and communicate research results.

You must be able to work effectively in a team and organise time, tasks and responsibilities with other team members. Experience in project management will be an advantage.

In this project you’ll have access to:

• State-of-the-art facilities: access to top-tier resources, cleanrooms, and materials-characterisation suites
• Interdisciplinary research: collaborate with experts within the university and beyond
• International collaboration: work closely with consortium partners across Europe towards ambitious project goals.

For informal enquiries, please write to Professor Harold Chong (hmhc@ecs.soton.ac.uk) or Dr Jacob Mackenzie (jim@orc.soton.ac.uk).

Further details can be found on the European Commission Fact Sheet: FAST

The post will be held in the School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) (http://ecs.soton.ac.uk) in collaboration with the Optoelectronics Research Centre (http://orc.soton.ac.uk).

Electronics and Computer Science provides a unique, friendly and supportive environment that facilitates use-inspired and multi-disciplinary research, education, training and outreach.

ECS holds an Athena SWAN Silver award in recognition of its’ continued commitment to improving equality for women in science and engineering. ECS provides a unique, friendly and supportive environment. We have a range of staff development programmes and a unique mentoring and wellbeing scheme.

To find out more about working at ECS, visit: https://www.ecs.soton.ac.uk/workinghere

The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and being a globally responsible university and has recently been awarded the Platinum EcoAward.

Closing Date: 04 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £45,641 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 24 months

The Programme aims to deliver a step-change in the understanding and control of electrochemical growth of functional transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) semiconductors, combining precursor design and synthesis, electrochemistry, theory, advanced characterisation and device integration. In addition to the essential disciplinary research skills, candidates should demonstrate genuine enthusiasm for collaborative working, the ability to communicate effectively across disciplines, and well-developed organisational skills.

This position is primarily concerned with the electrochemistry of transition metal complexes in dry non-aqueous solvents and nanoscale deposition. This includes detailed electrochemical characterisation of the single source precursors, optimisation of deposition conditions to achieve high-quality mono- and few-layer materials, and the integration of the electrodeposition process with nanoscale electronic device architectures. The successful candidate will work within the electrochemistry team led by Phil Bartlett in the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the University of Southampton, and will be required to be flexible and interact effectively with colleagues across the wider EXPRESS consortium to fulfil the scientific goals of the Programme. 

The position is offered until 31/12/2028 in the first instance, with the possibility of extension for up to 3 further years.

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

Closing Date: 04 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £41,064
Full Time Fixed Term (until 31/12/2028)

Motivation: Understanding how the seafloor evolves is critical for environmental monitoring and subsea infrastructure inspection. Natural processes and human activities drive changes over time, yet detecting these reliably remains challenging. Improved methods could enable early identification of risks to ecosystems and infrastructure, while providing quantitative evidence to support effective intervention and adaptive management.

Challenges: Documenting change in GNSS-denied subsea environments presents significant challenges. While changes occur over large spatial scales, change is often gradual, meaning that between seasonal or yearly deployments, the magnitude of change at any point on the seafloor remains below to the detection limit of even high-resolution mapping sensors. In addition, recognising and aligning scenes across repeated surveys is difficult due to navigation drift, evolving scene structure, and sensitivity to environmental conditions.

Research questions:

• How can evolving seafloor scenes be consistently recognised and spatially aligned across repeated subsea surveys in GNSS-denied environments?
• How can small seafloor changes be reliably detected when they are comparable to sensor noise?
• How can full-field uncertainty be modelled and propagated to support large-scale change analysis?

Approach: You will combine advanced robotic localisation and high-resolution mapping methods with advanced machine learning feature detection to enable evolving subsea scenes to be robustly aligned across repeat surveys. You will develop probabilistic models to detect subtle changes under noise and uncertainty. Your work will be validated using simulation, existing datasets from the University of Southampton’s Smarty200 AUV, and new data collected during field campaigns with the Ocean Perception group. Controlled experiments will also be conducted in the Maritime Robotics and Instrumentation Laboratory and its dedicated 8x8x6m deep-water tank.

Training and Environment: You will be part of the EU-funded BlueOcean Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network, working alongside 13 PhD researchers across leading European institutions. The programme provides interdisciplinary training in robotics, sensing, and AI for marine monitoring, as well as access to internationally recognised experts and industry partners. You will also undertake up to two three-month secondments with organisations including CNR (Italy) and Voyis Imaging (Canada).

Eligibility:

This PhD is funded via the European Commission. Recruitment is taking place following the European Code of Conduct for Recruitment of Researchers.

The School of Engineering is committed to promoting equality, diversity inclusivity as demonstrated by our Athena SWAN award. We welcome all applicants regardless of their gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or age, and will give full consideration to applicants seeking flexible working patterns and those who have taken a career break. The University has a generous maternity policy, onsite childcare facilities, and offers a range of benefits to help ensure employees’ well-being and work-life balance. The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and has been awarded the Platinum EcoAward.

The candidate:

To apply, please provide: 

If you are applying for this role, you must also apply for the PhD below.

https://www.phdscanner.com/opportunities/phd-vacancies-university-of-southampton-united-kingdom-robotic-monitoring-for-place-recognition-and-change-detection-in-dynamic-underwater-environments-c1cb18e8-c472-46e8-9a50-54c02cf5de44

Post title upon appointment will be MSCA Doctoral Network Research Fellow.

Closing Date: 31 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £43,994 to £47,279 Per annum, subject to bi-annual review due to exchange rate
Full Time Fixed Term for 36 months

You will work under the supervision of Prof. Bharathram Ganapathisubramani, collaborating with PhD students and other postdoctoral researchers within the group. 

Key responsibilities include:

• Carry our wind/water tunnel measurements relevant to topics including wall-turbulence, unsteady aerodynamics and aeroacoustics (possible projects include effects of roughness/pressure gradients on momentum/heat transfer, rotor-rotor or wing-rotor interactions, wing-body junction flows etc)
• Develop new diagnostic techniques to access new aspects of the flow
• Analyse data and develop new data-driven models that can be used for predictions
• Publish and present findings in relevant journals/conferences. 

You should hold a PhD (or equivalent experience) in Aerodynamics or Fluid Mechanics. Experimental experience is essential; Excellent communication and writing skills are required.

Equality, diversity and inclusion are central to the ethos of the School of Engineering. We particularly welcome applications from women, Black, Asian and minority ethnic, LGBT and disabled candidates. In recognition of our ongoing commitment to advancing gender equality in science, we received Athena SWAN Bronze Awards in 2013 and 2016. We fully consider requests for flexible working, including part-time arrangements, and welcome applications from those returning after a career break. The University also offers a generous maternity policy^** and on-site childcare facilities.

The University of Southampton is in the top 1% of world universities and in the top 10 of the UK’s research-intensive universities. The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and being a globally responsible university and has recently been awarded the Platinum EcoAward. This commits all our staff and students to take responsibility for managing their activities to minimise harm to the environment, whether this through switching off non-essential electrical equipment or using the recycling facilities.

Informal enquiries may be made to Prof. Ganapathisubramani (g.bharath@soton.ac.uk).

Working at the University of Southampton:

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Closing Date: 10 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £38,784 to £43,482 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 1 year

The successful candidate will join a multidisciplinary team developing advanced III-V semiconductor materials and integrated optoelectronic devices on silicon. The research programme focuses on the development of innovative epitaxial growth technologies for the integration of III-V materials on silicon and other lattice-mismatched platforms, enabling next-generation photonic devices for optical communications, sensing and emerging quantum technologies.

The role will involve the growth and optimisation of III-V semiconductor materials using Metalorganic Vapour Phase Epitaxy (MOVPE), together with the optical, electrical and structural characterisation of materials and devices. The successful candidate will also contribute to device fabrication and integration activities within Southampton's internationally renowned silicon photonics and nanofabrication facilities.

During the initial phase of the project, the postholder will work closely with external epitaxy facilities and project partners to undertake growth campaigns and advance the research programme while new III-V epitaxy infrastructure is established at Southampton. The role will therefore involve travel to partner organisations and requires the ability to work independently, and confidence in collaborating effectively with academic and industrial partners.

You should hold a PhD (or near completion) in Electronic Engineering, Photonics, Physics, or a closely related discipline. Hands-on experience in the epitaxial growth of III-V semiconductors, including III-As/P/Sb and/or III-nitride materials using metal-organic vapour phase epitaxy (MOVPE) or molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), is essential. Experience in semiconductor device fabrication, cleanroom processing, and optical or electrical characterisation techniques is highly desirable.

The successful candidate will have a strong publication record relative to career stage, excellent communication skills, and the ability to contribute effectively to a collaborative research environment spanning multiple institutions and industrial partners. You will be expected to disseminate research findings through high-quality publications and conference presentations, while helping to develop new research directions and collaborative opportunities.

The current contract is fixed term until 31 May 2028, with the possibility of an extension of up to 12 months.

Closing Date: 02 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 31/05/2028

This postdoctoral fellowship is part of the EXPRESS Programme Grant (Exploiting Single Source Precursors for the Electrochemical Growth of Functional 1D and 2D Metal Dichalcogenide Semiconductors) recently awarded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). EXPRESS is a large (>£10M) flagship, interdisciplinary research programme over 5-years. It is led jointly by the Universities of Southampton and Warwick, alongside several international and industrial partners, and brings together internationally leading teams from across chemistry, physics and electronic engineering. It aims to deliver a step-change in the understanding and control of electrochemical growth of high-quality mono/few-layer functional transition metal dichalcogenides TMDCs, combining precursor design and synthesis, electrochemistry, solution and surface computational modelling, advanced characterisation and device integration. In addition to the essential disciplinary research skills, candidates should demonstrate a genuine enthusiasm for collaborative working, the ability to communicate effectively across disciplines, and well-developed organisational skills.

In this role your primary focus will be using computational methods to model the behaviour of novel transition metal precursor complexes and other molecular compounds and ions in electrochemically relevant solutions, exploring their speciation in a range of relevant solvents and in the presence of a range of other species such as additives and inhibitors. You should have a good understanding of, and experience with, modern wavefunction and density functional methods, and have had experience in applying these methods to inorganic systems.

You will work in close collaboration with other computational experts and with experimentalists in electrochemistry studying the electrochemical properties of the precursors and the TMDC nucleation and growth processes, and with the inorganic synthesis team who will prepare the precursor compounds. You will be required to be flexible and interact effectively with colleagues across the wider EXPRESS consortium to fulfil the scientific goals of the Programme.

The position is offered for 24 months in the first instance, with the possibility of extension.

In your application, in addition to answering the specific questions, please include a CV and cover letter, clearly indicating how you meet the essential and, where applicable, desirable criteria for this post.

Closing Date: 30 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £40,704 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 24 months

The advertised role is a fixed-term 12-month research-only position supporting the project ‘Accent Bias and Domestic Abuse Victimisation (ABDVic)’, funded by an ESRC New Investigator grant and led by principal investigator Dr Matthew Hunt. The ABDAVic project is an experimental sociolinguistics project aimed at uncovering possible linguistic discrimination of domestic abuse victims, with a specific focus on biases against classed and racialised accents. The project will involve two stages. Stage One will involve conducting matched guise-style experiments with members of the general population, while Stage Two will involve conducting those same experiments with trained domestic abuse support workers. The role is primarily to support design and implementation of these experiments – including creating auditory stimuli – as well as analysis and dissemination of the results. This role can be optionally completed remotely, with the occasional visit to Southampton or travel for conferences.

Applicants will be expected to be proficient in survey design and implementation, ideally with the university’s approved survey tool Qualtrics. They will also be expected to be proficient in either R or Python for statistical analysis, including data visualisation and mixed effect regression. They will also make written contributions to conference abstracts and talks, and eventual journal articles stemming from the project; at least one of these articles will feature the research assistant as lead author. While this is a sociolinguistics project, the position is open to applicants with PhDs in experimental social research more broadly, including applicants from fields like sociology, psychology and political science. Applicants with experience working in the areas of language and ethnicity and/or language and social class are preferred. Experience in phonetics and proficiency in Praat and Audacity is also desirable.

What we can offer you

As a university we aim to create an environment where everyone can thrive and are proactive in fostering a culture of inclusion, respect and equality of opportunity. We believe that we can only truly meet our objectives if we are reflective of society, so we are passionate about creating a working environment in which you are free to bring your whole self to work. With a generous holiday allowance as well as additional university closure days we are committed to supporting our staff and students and open to a flexible working approach. 

If you wish to discuss the role in more detail, please email Dr Matthew Hunt (m.c.hunt@soton.ac.uk) for more information.

Please provide your CV and cover letter as part of your application. 

Closing Date: 29 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £41,885 Per Annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 12 months

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• a PhD or equivalent qualification (or be nearing completion thereof) in Physics/Optical Engineering or another subject relevant to the study, development and/or application of topological photonic materials;
• proven practical knowledge and expertise in the field of photonic crystals/metamaterials;
• strong problem-solving skills, self-motivation, and an ability to collaborate in multidisciplinary teams;
• a strong track record of research dissemination through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.

It will be advantageous, but not essential, to have recent experience in one or more of:

• the use of micro/nanofabrication and materials characterization tools; 
• computational multi-physics/electromagnetics modelling and eigenmode analysis for photonic crystals; 
• terahertz/microwave far-field spectra measurements or near-field scanning.

In this role, you will join an interdisciplinary research group at the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), with interests ranging from nanophotonics, metrology, metamaterials, and topological photonics.

The ORC is proud to hold an Athena Swan Bronze Award, recognising our support for the advancement of women in science. Our diverse community encompasses over 49 nationalities, and we offer a range of initiatives to support personal and professional growth, including mentoring schemes, an Early Career Researchers Forum, and the Women in Optics group. We also offer flexible, hybrid, and part-time working arrangements to help meet individual needs.

As well as a world-class research environment, we offer benefits including a generous holiday allowance, access to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), and subsidised health and fitness facilities.

This is a full-time fixed-term position until 30 November 2028 from 1^st of December 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. 

The post is available at the level of Research Fellow, with specific salary scale depending on the experience. 

For informal enquiries, please write to Dr Dongyang Wang (d.y.wang@soton.ac.uk).

Working at the University of Southampton:

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Closing Date: 28 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 30/11/2028

Applicants must hold a PhD in synthetic organic chemistry (or be close to completion), or have equivalent professional qualifications and experience. Strong expertise in organic synthesis is required, including multi-step synthesis, reaction optimisation, purification and structural characterisation. Experience in total synthesis, catalysis, photochemistry and/or mechanistic studies would be advantageous. You should have an excellent work ethic, strong problem solving skills and enthusiasm for achieving the project aims. You will also contribute to the general running and maintenance of the laboratory.

The project will focus on the biomimetic synthesis of complex natural products, particularly meroterpenoids, using cascade reactions inspired by biosynthetic pathways. The research will explore how simple precursors can be converted rapidly into structurally complex molecules through dearomatisation, rearrangement and cycloaddition chemistry. Particular emphasis will be placed on developing new reactions based on the inherent reactivity of proposed biosynthetic intermediates, combining total synthesis with reaction discovery and mechanistic investigation.

You will join the George Group in the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at the University of Southampton. The project will provide advanced training in synthetic organic chemistry and structural characterisation, with opportunities to interact with collaborators in computational chemistry, natural product isolation and biosynthesis. You will be encouraged to present your research at national and international conferences, contribute to publications arising from the project, and develop mentoring and leadership skills within the research group.

Recent work relevant to the project includes:

Further information about our research can be found on the group website: https://jonathangeorgeblog.wordpress.com/ 

For informal enquiries contact Dr Jonathan George: jonathan.george@southampton.ac.uk 

Letters of recommendation are not required at this stage but will be requested if you are shortlisted for interview. Interviews are due to be held in November 2026.

At the University of Southampton, we value diversity and equality. The University recognises that employees may wish to have working patterns that fit with their caring responsibilities or work-life balance. Due consideration will also be given to applicants who have had career breaks for reasons including maternity, paternity or adoption leave, disability or illness. Both the University of Southampton and Chemistry are proud to hold Athena Swan Silver Awards.

Closing Date: 26 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £45,641 Per Annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 3 Years

A Computational Ship Hydrodynamics and Design Optimisation specialist is required to work on an ambitious and novel project to embed physics informed generative AI tools within a marine vessel concept, generation and evaluation platform. 

This will be part of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP), which is a collaborative project between Compute Maritime Ltd and the University of Southampton. 

Find out more about Knowledge Transfer Partnerships here: https://www.ktp-uk.org/

Compute Maritime Ltd is a London-based deep-tech company bringing intelligence to the core of the global shipbuilding industry through generative artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing.

Through its proprietary technologies, most notably NeuralShipper, the company is building the first AI-native maritime design ecosystem, offering end-to-end solutions across the vessel lifecycle, from early concept design to operational optimisation.

The Machine Learning Engineer will be required to undertake the following:

The successful Machine Learning Engineer will have the following skills, experience and attributes:

• MSc/MEng or PhD (desirable) in Machine Learning, AI, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Hydrodynamics, Optimisation, or a related discipline.
• Experience of applying machine learning and deep learning to engineering or physical systems.
• Strong scientific programming skills in Python, with experience in C++, MATLAB, or similar languages desirable.
• Experience with a deep learning framework such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX (desirable).
• Experience with engineering simulation tools relevant to CFD, hydrodynamics, or vessel performance, such as STAR-CCM+.
• Understanding of naval architecture, ship hydrodynamics, vessel performance, or design analysis.
• Experience in physics-informed machine learning, surrogate modelling, generative AI, or design optimisation would be desirable.
• An entrepreneurial mindset and a willingness to build commercial acumen alongside technical strengths.

Personal development: A separate £6,000 budget is available over the duration of the KTP for relevant training, conferences and professional memberships.

Closing Date: 16 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £41,064 to £45,064
Full Time Fixed Term (3 years)

The University of Southampton is ranked among the world’s top 100 and is one of the UK’s top 15 research-intensive institutions. The School of Engineering are a world-class centre for education, research and enterprise; one of the largest and strongest engineering communities in the UK. The Technical and Experimental team provide essential technical support to laboratories and workshops in diverse areas including design, manufacturing, bioengineering, sound, vibration, environmental, maritime, mechatronics, mechanical engineering and materials. This role will be instrumental in supporting our new robotics laboratory, including the design and delivery of practical robotics laboratory sessions, including digital twin software.

To be successful in this role, you will:

• Have substantial technical experience in robotics and robotic equipment, as well as experience of working in a teaching environment.
• Experience in coding and control of robotic systems, including digital twin software. 
• Be an effective team member who communicates effectively with others, including students and stakeholders external to the School of Engineering. 
• Design teaching activities within established policies and procedures to solve complex technical problems. 

The University of Southampton is committed to fostering a culture of equality, diversity and inclusion. We welcome applications from suitably qualified candidates, and particularly encourage applications from candidates belonging to groups who are under-represented within technical posts at the University, including, but not limited to: people from Black and minority ethnic groups; and disabled people. The University is committed to providing equal opportunities for all and a range of family friendly policies, and we encourage staff to apply for flexible working. We are a Disability Confident employer and the University is a founding signatory of the Athena SWAN Charter and holds an silver-level Athena SWAN award. We are a signatory to the Technicians Commitment and can provide opportunities for career development and mentoring.

Informal enquiries can be made to Prof Richard Wills (HoD-Mech@soton.ac.uk)

Working at the University of Southampton:

Check out the staff benefits and why you should join us at The University of Southampton.

Closing Date: 22 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746 per annum
Full Time Permanent

You will join Responsible AI UK, a £31 million UKRI-funded national programme spanning 28 UK universities and over 150 partner organisations across academia, industry, government and civil society. RAi UK is one of the largest responsible AI research programmes in the UK, working at the interface of interdisciplinary research, policy and practice. You will work alongside the CEO, Professor Sarvapali (Gopal) Ramchurn, and the RAi UK leadership team.

About the role

This is an opportunity for an experienced postdoctoral researcher to work at the heart of one of the UK’s largest responsible AI programmes. The post holder will translate technical outputs from across the RAi UK portfolio and the wider Responsible AI landscape into clear, evidence-based policy advice for government, industry and the public. The research will focus on:

The post holder will design and convene roundtables, workshops and events with senior stakeholders across UK government, regulators, industry, civil society and international partners. They will synthesise findings into white papers, policy briefings and consultation responses, and will represent RAi UK at national and international policy fora. The role may require travel across the UK and internationally.

To be successful you will have:

This post offers significant exposure to senior policymakers, opportunities for visible thought leadership, and the chance to shape national and international conversations on the responsible governance of agentic and physical AI.

For further information about Responsible AI UK, please visit: https://rai.ac.uk

Closing Date: 14 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £45,641 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 31/03/2028

• Host galaxies of transients (University of Southampton): derive host-galaxy properties from LSST+TiDES photometric and spectroscopic data, and use the unprecedented LSST+TiDES transient sample to study how transients correlate with their environments, and measure transient rates to uncover the physical origins of the deaths of stars.
• SNe Ia cosmology groundwork and citizen science (University of Oxford): use over 30,000 spectroscopically confirmed SNe Ia and 150,000 host-galaxy redshifts to improve SNe Ia standardisation and lay the groundwork for using SNe to constrain Dark Energy and large-scale structure (e.g. via weak lensing and structure growth rate) and contribute to a citizen science project for transient classification.
• Simulations and selection effects (Lancaster University): lead the forward-modelling of the combined LSST+TiDES sample, and characterize its associated sample selection effects. This project will include building galaxy population catalogues validated against state-of-the-art cosmological simulations (e.g. Illustris-TNS). This simulation effort will be the foundation underpinning every rate, host-galaxy and cosmological result in TRANSCEND.

While each position will be associated with a TRANSCEND deliverable, all Postdoctoral Research Associate will have opportunities to follow-up interesting transients and be encouraged to pursue projects that maximise the science from TiDES.

All Postdoctoral Research Associates are full-time posts funded for 5 years from 1st April 2027. Applicants are encouraged to apply for more than one post and all three researchers will be expected to work closely, through regular collaboration visits, to maximise the overall scientific outcomes of TRANSCEND; please state your order of preference (topic and institution) in your application. Moreover, all Postdoctoral Research Associates will contribute part of their time to TiDES infrastructure work.

Qualifications:
 A PhD (or near completion) in astrophysics, physics, cosmology or a related field; strong scientific programming skills (Python); research experience in time-domain astrophysics, supernovae, galaxy evolution, cosmology or survey science. Excellent communication and teamwork skills.

Application Requirements:
 CV, publication list, and a 2-page research statement describing past research experience and its relevance to the TRANSCEND science goals. If applying to more than one post, state your order preference in the research statement.

Contact info: p.s.wiseman@soton.ac.uk, M.Sullivan@soton.ac.uk

Closing Date: 06 Nov 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £45,641 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 5 years

Given our team's existing research skillset in novel machine learning approaches, we are recruiting a team of outstanding researchers in cloud compute architecture design and event-triggered computing to work with us on realising SONNETS' ambitious objectives.

Researchers on our team contribute towards:

• Architect event-triggered compute stacks using industry-standard orchestration tools (e.g. Kubernetes and container workflows), and to engineer loading strategies for managing highly-irregular flows of data from many sources.
• Develop approaches to model the performance of the aforementioned event-triggered systems, and to use these models to optimise SONNETS architectures.
• Collaborate with artificial intelligence model designers in Southampton and at our partner institutions to support your research, which will be disseminated through publications, seminars, conference presentations, public engagement, and ultimately through a proof of concept implementation for the Bank of England.

SONNETS is an interdisciplinary project; we are open to work with researchers with varying academic backgrounds. Those with experience in, for example, machine learning, high-performance computing, reconfigurable hardware, cloud computing, compiler engineering, distributed systems, or DevOps are encouraged to apply, as well as others with related experience that can be applied to further the objectives of this project.

The post will be full time until the end of December 2028.

By applying, you are agreeing that we can share your information with project partners. In your application, please provide a CV and cover letter detailing how you meet the essential and desirable criteria on the Job Description & Person Specification.

Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) must not be used to generate any component of your application. In turn, your application will not be reviewed using GenAI. Appropriate GenAI use is welcome in the prosecution of the project itself.

This position is open to both hybrid and in-person working arrangements.

For informal enquiries: please contact Dr Mark Vousden (m.vousden@soton.ac.uk). You can find more information on the SONNETS project on our website at https://sonnets-project.org/ and on the UKRI Gateway to Research Website, at https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=EP%2FX036006%2F1.

Working at the University of Southampton:

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Closing Date: 12 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 31/12/2028

The project aims to develop new ways of understanding how citizens and other political actors think their political institutions should function. Existing surveys like the European Social Survey show extremely strong support for liberal democratic values across Europe, yet people are increasingly voting for far-right parties that reject exactly these values. 

To make sense of this conundrum, we need to shift away from researching democratic attitudes as a choice between alternative normative models of democracy, such as representative democracy versus direct democracy. Instead, we require an approach that is psychologically more realistic and more closely approximates the reality of the complex democratic systems we inhabit, which do not correspond to the neat conceptual delineations of democratic theories.

The post holder will take a prominent role in developing the conceptual and methodological innovations to create and operationalise the new approach by designing, conducting and analysing original survey research. This will involve connecting with the projects qualitative work, for instance; focus groups and cognitive interviewing to better understand the nature and content of political process preferences, then using the insights from this work to create survey experiments that will test the new approach. The post-holder will take a role in all stages of this process, from conceptualisation to data collection and analysis, as well as writing up and presenting the findings. As such, there is scope for the post-holder to bring their own skills and interests to influence the direction of the research.

This research position will be based in the Department of Politics and International Relations within the Faculty of Social Sciences, at the University of Southampton, and the work will be carried out under the supervision of Rikki Dean (principal investigator of the project). You will join a vibrant Department with a high concentration of scholars at all career levels researching related themes in the Public Opinion Research Network and the Centre for Behavioural, Experimental and Action Research. The position also comes with its own budget for travel and professional development.

To be successful you will have completed your PhD in a relevant (or equivalent professional qualifications). You will have: a strong background in survey research, with previous experience of survey experiments desirable; a track record of research on the political attitudes of the public and/or other key political actors; a facility for solving conceptual and methodological problems; the ability to plan and organise work independently and as part of a team; the ability to write research presentations and papers for peer-reviewed publication. An interest in combining insights from quantitative and qualitative research is also desirable.

The Research Fellow post is full-time fixed term with a negotiable start date. Hybrid working is possible for this post.

Please included a cover letter and CV when submitting your application.

The University of Southampton holds an Athena SWAN Silver Award demonstrating commitment to equal opportunities in the workplace.

Informal enquiries may be addressed to Rikki Dean, email: r.j.dean@soton.ac.uk

Closing Date: 16 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £37,369 to £45,641 Per Annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 36 months

The project brings together evolutionary biology, pharmacology and organismal biology to investigate how sensory systems evolved during the early evolution of animals. Particular emphasis will be placed on receptors known as Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) channels from non-bilaterian animals and choanoflagellates.

The postholder will play a role in the molecular and functional characterisation of candidate sensory receptors and channels. Working within the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton, you will use molecular cloning, heterologous expression and pharmacological assays to investigate candidate TRP channels responding to chemical and physical stimuli.

You will generate and validate receptor and channel constructs, express candidate proteins in mammalian cells, develop and optimise functional assays, and perform medium- to high-throughput pharmacological screening. Positive candidates will be characterised using concentration–response experiments and quantitative analysis to determine their pharmacological and sensory properties.

A major strength of the project is its integration of molecular pharmacology with evolutionary and organismal biology. You will work closely with collaborators investigating sensory-driven behaviours and TRP channel function in experimentally tractable non-bilaterian organisms. The role will involve collaboration with the partner laboratory in Villefranche-sur-Mer, France, and may include travel for project meetings, sample collection and integration of pharmacological and behavioural components.

The position offers an opportunity to develop expertise at the interface of molecular pharmacology, evolutionary biology and sensory neuroscience, while contributing to questions about the evolutionary origins of animal sensation.

About you

You will have a PhD, or be close to completing one, in a relevant discipline such as pharmacology, molecular biology, neuroscience, biochemistry, physiology or evolutionary biology.

You will have experience in molecular biology, cloning and construct preparation, and experience using heterologous expression systems. Experience with mammalian cell culture and functional receptor or ion-channel assays using fluorescence- or luminescence-based readouts would be desired.

You should be confident analysing quantitative experimental data, including concentration–response experiments, EC50 determination and statistical analysis. Experience with ion channels, GPCRs or TRP channels, plate-reader-based assays, high-throughput screening, Xenopus oocyte expression or electrophysiology would be advantageous. Preferably using R or python.

An interest in evolutionary biology, comparative genomics or the biology of early-diverging animals would be beneficial, although applicants primarily trained in molecular pharmacology, cell biology or related disciplines are strongly encouraged to apply.

You will be expected to work independently while contributing to a collaborative and interdisciplinary research programme. Good organisation, careful experimental record keeping and a commitment to reproducible research are important. You should also be comfortable communicating your findings through publications, conference presentations and interactions with collaborators from different disciplines and institutions.

The University of Southampton offers a range of benefits, including a generous holiday allowance and additional University closure days. We support flexible working and a healthy work–life balance, alongside access to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), subsidised health and fitness facilities and a range of staff discounts.

This post is offered on a three-year fixed-term basis.

For additional information please contact Dr Luis Yanez-Guerra (l.a.yanez-guerra@soton.ac.uk), University of Southampton.

Closing Date: 23 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £36,636 to £41,064 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 36 months

The post will work on a collaborative project between the University of Southampton and the University of Oxford investigating the potential of magnetic reconnection for space propulsion, as part of a three year long research project funded by the Leverhulme Trust.

The overall project is to broadly investigate the potential of magnetic reconnection as a method to accelerate plasma in future space propulsion systems. Various recent studies have suggested magnetic reconnection as a potential space propulsion method (DOI's: 10.1063/5.0320433, 10.2514/6.2023-0448, 10.1017/S0022377820001476), suggesting it has some promise in particular to achieve high specific impulse at high powers. The project is a collaboration between Southampton, led by Professor Charlie Ryan, and Oxford, led by Professor Dmitri Uzdensky. Oxford will develop the theoretical and analytical basis of the magnetic reconnection for space propulsion applications, whilst Southampton will focus on the experimental aspects. Using the world class vacuum facilities at Southampton we will develop a magnetic reconnection test article that can investigate magnetic reconnection at the small scale.

You will join a group of eight researchers working on different aspects of space propulsion, with the team based in the David Fearn Electric Propulsion Lab at the University of Southampton. It will be expected that the researcher actively engages with academic partners and with the research team through collaborative meetings, with opportunities to travel to conferences during the project duration.

It is desirable that the person has experience in designing and testing ion thruster technology, magnetic reconnection, or experimental testing of plasma devices within vacuum chambers, and a demonstrated aptitude for learning new fields of research. The person should have a PhD, or equivalent qualifications and experience, in aerospace engineering, experimental plasma physics in particular reconnection, or other ion beam uses. It is desirable that the person has experience of operating large vacuum chamber facilities, and a strong aptitude towards experimental testing. A strong track record of high-quality journal publications is an advantage.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact Dr Charlie Ryan: c.n.ryan@soton.ac.uk

At the University of Southampton, we value diversity and equality. The University recognises that employees may wish to have working patterns that fit with their caring responsibilities or work-life balance. Due consideration will also be given to applicants who have had career breaks for reasons including maternity, paternity or adoption leave, disability or illness. The University of Southampton is proud to hold Athena Swan Silver Awards.

Closing Date: 12 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £41,064 to £44,746 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 30/09/2029

The NIHR Maternity Disparities Consortium is a £50 million national initiative bringing together a diverse range of organisations with expertise in research, capacity development and working with people and communities to deliver a step change in maternity outcomes and developing future research leaders in this area of need. The research carried out by the consortium will focus on inequalities before, during and after pregnancy.

The postholder will join the Preconception and Interpregnancy Health theme, which is evaluating a new system-wide blueprint for preconception and interpregnancy care and support. Working within a multidisciplinary team, you will lead the health economics evaluation of the blueprint, assessing the costs, cost-effectiveness and equity impacts of preconception and interpregnancy care interventions. Your work will contribute to developing the economic case for action to reduce maternity disparities, with particular attention to the needs of underserved communities.

You will play a key leadership role in designing and delivering the health economics research, including developing economic evaluation and analysis plans, conducting economic modelling and secondary data analysis, synthesising evidence, and producing high-quality research outputs. You will work closely with NHS and other healthcare partners, commissioners, policymakers, community and third-sector organisations, and colleagues across the Consortium to ensure that the research is relevant, rigorous and has impact.

The role offers excellent opportunities to develop your research profile and work towards research independence, build collaborative networks, contribute to knowledge exchange and policy engagement, and support the development of postgraduate and PhD researchers. You will have the opportunity to contribute to a programme of research that will inform decisions about how best to reduce disparities in maternity outcomes.

This is a part-time (0.5 FTE) fixed-term appointment until 31 May 2028, in the first instance. Subject to NIHR review and funding, there may be opportunities for elements of the research programme to continue beyond this date.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Professor Tracey Sach (T.Sach@soton.ac.uk) or Dr Danielle Schoenaker (D.Schoenaker@soton.ac.uk).

Closing Date: 14 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £46,049 to £56,535 Pro rata per annum
Part Time Fixed Term until 31/05/2028(0.5FTE, 17.5 hours per week)

Uncharted Maritime Worlds is a major European Research Council project investigating the development of seaborne trade, shipping and maritime networks from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. It will bring together large quantities of previously fragmented archival evidence from across Europe to reconstruct patterns of maritime activity and develop new ways of analysing the people, ships, ports and trading networks that connected the early modern world.

The Research Fellow will take primary responsibility for identifying, collecting and analysing evidence from Spanish archives relating to maritime trade, shipping and overseas commerce between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries. You will undertake extensive archival research in Spain, identify and transcribe early modern Spanish manuscript sources, and extract and structure historical information for incorporation into the project's integrated digital database. You will work closely with other members of the UMW team to integrate Spanish evidence with archival data collected elsewhere in Europe and contribute to the project's comparative historical research.

You will have a PhD (or equivalent) in History or a closely related discipline and research expertise in early modern Spain and/or the Spanish Atlantic, maritime or commercial history. Excellent written and spoken Spanish and English, advanced ability to read sixteenth- to eighteenth-century Spanish handwriting, and experience of conducting research in Spanish archives are essential. You will also have experience of extracting and analysing historical information from archival sources and working with historical datasets, databases, or digital humanities methods.

You will join an interdisciplinary research team of historians and digital specialists and will have opportunities to develop your own research and publications within the wider aims of the project, as well as contributing to collaborative publications, conferences, digital resources and other UMW outputs. The position will involve periods of archival research in Spain and elsewhere in Europe.

The post will be based in History in the School of Humanities at the University of Southampton.

For informal enquiries, please contact Professor Craig Lambert at c.lambert@soton.ac.uk.

Please apply by uploading your CV and a cover letter detailing how your skills and experience meet the requirements set out in the Job Description and Person Specification.

Closing Date: 12 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £40,704 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 30/09/2031

The CHIMES (Centre for Heterogeneous Integrated Micro-Electronic Systems) Innovation and Knowledge Centre (IKC) is one of four national centres funded by UKRI to support the UK electronics and semiconductor industry. The Centre exists to accelerate the adoption and commercialisation of Heterogeneous Integration (HI) across the UK supply chain.

A core activity of the Centre is to undertake industry-led, co-created projects in advanced methods of electronic systems design and the Heterogeneous Integration of semiconductors. This is an opportunity to join a Centre at the forefront of semiconductor innovation, working alongside industry partners and a network of leading universities to translate partner requirements into functioning demonstrators that solve real-world challenges.

About the Role

This Senior Analog/Mixed-Signal Design Engineer role is central to the IKC's mission and has two complementary aspects. First, working closely with the wider team, you will help develop reusable design methodologies and assets, becoming the Technical Authority on key technology areas such as PHY-level interfaces, custom pad circuits, and analog/digital interfaces. Second, working with the Co-Creation Project Lead and industry partner design teams, you will help develop functioning HI demonstrators, promote the adoption of reusable design methodologies, and resolve design challenges at the analog/mixed-signal interfaces within these systems.

You will provide hands-on analog/mixed-signal design expertise across co-creation PoC projects, with primary responsibility for PHY-level interface design at die-to-die boundaries, including drivers, receivers, ESD structures, termination, and clocking circuits tailored to specific process nodes and packaging technologies. You will define integration-level requirements and interface specifications, coordinate with specialist colleagues across digital design and verification, and undertake physical design work at the integration level, including floorplanning, I/O ring planning, and interface layout across dies, interposers, and packaging substrates.

In addition to project delivery, you will act as an advocate for the Centre's capabilities. You will engage in peer-to-peer technical dialogue with industry partner design teams, support partners in applying the Centre's reusable design assets, contribute to technical workshops and design masterclasses to upskill the UK design community, and represent the Centre's analog/mixed-signal design and integration capabilities at industry events and conferences.

About You

We are looking for a self-starter who can work proactively and collaboratively to achieve project outcomes. You will have authoritative practical knowledge of analog/mixed-signal circuit design and a strong understanding of the semiconductor design and manufacturing ecosystem, including design flows, PDKs, packaging processes, and design-for-test.

Additional Information

Travel to other industry partners and universities within the UK will be required, and international travel (for example to conferences) may be required. The maintenance of confidentiality in information and data management is mandatory at all times, including the handling of assets held under strict disclosure agreements.

For specific questions relating to this post please contact Professor Ibrahim Sari at ibrahim.sari@soton.ac.uk.

Closing Date: 31 Oct 2026

Section: Education, Research & Enterprise

Salary: £46,049 to £58,225 per annum
Full Time Fixed Term for 5 years