You will join a collaborative, supportive group and have the opportunity to thrive in a university environment developing future technology. You will work and grow in a team whose culture centres on people, collegiality, quality, internationalisation, and sustainability.

The post is funded through 28 February 2028 and is therefore offered on a fixed-term basis. However, there is a strong likelihood of extension, subject to the availability of continued funding.

In this role you will:

• Design and implement bespoke optical measurement systems for characterisation of hollow-core fibres and fibre-optic components.
• Develop and deploy new characterisation techniques and measurement capabilities.
• Design, implement, and maintain automated experimental systems using MATLAB, Python, LabVIEW or similar software environments.
• Develop software for instrument control, data acquisition, and data processing.
• Create and maintain uncertainty models, calibration procedures, and measurement error budgets.
• Evaluate, interpret, and report complex experimental datasets.
• Perform advanced optical measurements including, e.g.: OTDR, OFDR, loss, modal characterisation. 
• Design and execute reliability testing, accelerated life testing and qualification programmes for fibre-optic components and systems.
• Communicate technical findings and recommendations to researchers, industrial partners and external customers.
• Support researchers, students, and technical colleagues through training, technical guidance and knowledge sharing.
• Contribute to the development of future laboratory capabilities, instrumentation, and measurement methodologies.

Essential Skills and Experience

• Significant experience in photonics, optical fibres, experimental physics, optical engineering or a related technical discipline.
• Experience designing, implementing or improving complex scientific or engineering measurement systems.
• Experience developing software for instrument control, data acquisition, and data processing using MATLAB, Python, LabVIEW, or equivalent platforms.
• Experience interpreting complex experimental datasets.
• Experience communicating technical findings and recommendations to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong understanding of optical measurement principles and experimental methodology.
• Experience troubleshooting complex technical or experimental systems.
• Strong organisational and planning capabilities.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills.

Desirable Skills and Experience

• Experience with hollow-core optical fibres.
• Experience with OTDR, OFDR or advanced fibre-optic reflectometry techniques.
• Experience with measurement uncertainty analysis, metrology or error-budget development.
• Experience with fibre-optic component qualification and reliability testing, e.g. Telcordia or comparable standards.
• Familiarity with accelerated life testing, highly accelerated stress screening (HASS), or related methodologies.
• Experience designing bespoke laboratory instrumentation or automated measurement systems.
• Experience with advanced fibre splicing and fibre handling techniques.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to develop cutting-edge optical measurement technologies within a globally recognised research group.
• A collaborative and supportive working environment.
• Opportunities for technical leadership and panalysisrofessional development.
• Access to world-class research facilities and expertise.
• Opportunity to shape the future measurement capabilities of a rapidly growing research area.

For general inquiries regarding this position, please contact Professor Austin Taranta, a.a.taranta@soton.ac.uk.

Closing Date: 18 Sep 2026

Section: Technical & Experimental

Salary: £36,636 to £44,746 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 28/02/2028

You will join a collaborative, supportive group and have the opportunity to thrive in a university environment developing future technology. You will work and grow in a team whose culture centres on people, collegiality, quality, internationalisation, and sustainability.

The post is funded through 28 February 2028 and is therefore offered on a fixed-term basis. However, there is a strong likelihood of extension, subject to the availability of continued funding.

In this role you will:

• Deliver complex hollow-core fibre characterisation activities across multiple research and industrial programmes.
• Perform fibre preparation, coupling, attenuation measurements, OTDR measurements, cutback measurements, and fibre-optic assembly characterisation.
• Manage and develop characterisation databases to ensure effective retrieval and traceability of experimental data.
• Deploy established simulation and modelling tools to evaluate expected fibre performance and compare model predictions against experimental results.
• Analyse, interpret, and report complex experimental and simulation datasets supporting high-impact publications and strategic research collaborations. 
• Identify fibres capable of meeting specific project and collaborator requirements through interrogation of technical databases and historical datasets.
• Maintain laboratory procedures, technical documentation, and quality records associated with fibre characterisation activities.
• Support researchers and students through training, technical guidance, and knowledge sharing.
• Prepare and communicate technical reports and characterisation results to project teams, industrial partners and external collaborators.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of laboratory practices, measurement quality and statistical process capability monitoring.

Essential Skills and Experience

• Significant experience in optical fibre, photonics or related experimental activities.
• Experience undertaking complex scientific or engineering measurements and interpreting experimental data.
• Experience with optical test and measurement equipment and laboratory-based experimental techniques.
• Experience managing or maintaining technical datasets, databases or structured experimental records.
• Experience analysing technical results and communicating findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong organisational and planning capabilities.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills.
• Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting capability.

Desirable Skills and Experience

• Experience with hollow-core optical fibres.
• Experience with optical fibre characterisation techniques including attenuation measurements, cutback measurements and OTDR measurements.
• Experience with fibre rewinding, preparation, and deployment for testing.
• Experience with scanning electron microscopy.
• Experience using MATLAB, Python, or equivalent scientific software tools.
• Experience performing statistical analysis, process capability assessment or trend analysis.
• Experience working with industry-funded research programmes.
• Experience communicating technical results to customers or external stakeholders.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge hollow-core fibre research within a globally recognised research group.
• Engagement with major industrial and government-funded programmes.
• A collaborative and supportive working environment.
• Opportunities for professional development and technical specialisation.
• Access to world-class research facilities and expertise.

For general inquiries regarding this position, please contact Professor Austin Taranta, a.a.taranta@soton.ac.uk.

Closing Date: 16 Sep 2026

Section: Technical & Experimental

Salary: £36,636 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 28/02/2028