PhD in Soft Matter Rheology

Department/faculty: Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering

Level: Master degree
Working hours: 38 hours per week
Contract: 4 years
Salary: €2062 to €2638 per month gross

Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering

The 3mE Faculty trains committed engineering students, PhD candidates and post-doctoral researchers in groundbreaking scientific research in the fields of mechanical, maritime and materials engineering. 3mE is the epitome of a dynamic, innovative faculty, with a European scope that contributes demonstrable economic and social benefits.

The Process and Energy Department focuses on process and energy technology within a mechanical engineering context. Research in the department runs the full range from fundamental to applied. Most relevant to the current opening is the department's expertise in fluid mechanics and nonequilibrium systems.

The research will be performed in the group of Dr. Brian Tighe, a member of the Engineering Thermodynamics section. The group's expertise is in modelling the statistics and mechanical response of soft matter. Recent research has focused on understanding how out-of-equilibrium systems jam into disordered solids, and on predicting their unusual behaviour.

Job description

Soft solids and complex fluids – such as foams, emulsions, suspensions, and granular media – appear in a number of natural and industrial settings. Attempts to model their mechanical behavior raise important and fundamental questions: How does mechanical rigidity develop? What is the role of disorder? How do soft solids transition to a flowing state, and vice versa?

This project addresses the mechanics of marginal matter – compliant solids that are barely rigid and viscous flows that easily arrest. The PhD student will develop computer simulations to model the yielding transition between these states, and use theoretical methods to model the simulations' output. The goal is to to explain how and when soft matter yields, i.e. to develop predictive rheological equations of state.
     

Requirements

We are looking for an enthusiastic researcher with a Master's degree in Physics or a relevant field of engineering. The successful candidate will have (1) a background in statistical physics and/or continuum mechanics and (2) a demonstrated ability in numerical modelling and analysis of large data sets.

Conditions of employment

TU Delft offers an attractive benefits package, including a flexible work week, free high-speed Internet access from home (with contracts of two years or longer), and the option of assembling a customized compensation and benefits package (the 'IKA'). Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.
As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment; an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor; and a Doctoral Education Programme aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills. Please visit www.phd.tudelft.nl for more information.

Information and application

For more information about this position, please contact Dr. Brian Tighe, phone: +31 (0)15-2781103, e-mail: b.p.tighe@tudelft.nl. To apply, please e-mail a detailed CV, references, publication list and a letter of application to Dr. Tighe, b.p.tighe@tudelft.nl. For more information about the group, visit http://dutw1479.wbmt.tudelft.nl/~btighe.
When applying for this position, please refer to vacancy number 3ME13-22.
The position will remain open until a suitable candidate has been found.