We are always looking for excellent and highly motivated candidates to join our group and explore with us the ultracold world! We offer positions at all levels: undergraduate projects, bachelor and master theses, and PhD and postdoc positions. In particular, we have right now open experimental PhD and postdoc positions in two experiments.
In our potassium quantum mixtures project, we explore unconventional superfluid phases where superfluidity appears combined with other exotic phenomena, such as crystalline order, liquid behavior or topological excitations. In your PhD or postdoc, you will exploit two-component potassium gases with competing interactions to investigate supersolid and quantum liquids, and boost our long-term efforts to engineer superfluids with anyons and Majorana excitations. This position is funded by our ERC project SuperComp (Unconventional Superfluids in Quantum Gases with Competing Interactions), and is also part of the international collaborative projects DFG-FOR2414 (Artificial gauge fields and interacting topological phases) and QuantERA DYNAMITE (Next Generation Quantum Simulators: From DYNAMIcal Gauge Fields to Lattice Gauge ThEory).
In our Rydberg lab, which we have just started this Fall 2022, we want to set up a programable quantum simulator using strontium atoms trapped in optical tweezers and excited to Rydberg states, with the goal of expanding the scope of quantum simulation from low to high energy physics. We are looking for excellent PhD students and postdocs to design and construct the apparatus from scratch, and start planning the first scientific projects. This project is funded by the Severo Ochoa program at ICFO, by MCIN and EU through the program NextGenerationEU, and by the European QuantERA DYNAMITE (Next Generation Quantum Simulators: From DYNAMIcal Gauge Fields to Lattice Gauge ThEory).
We also offer experimental Master projects on both projects, as well as on the strontium quantum gas microscope lab that we are constructing. You will find here our Master thesis proposals for 2022-2023: MasterProjects_2022.
If you are interested in any of these three positions, contact Leticia Tarruell for more details.
If you are interested in any other opening, don’t hesitate to send an e-mail to Leticia Tarruell. For PhD and postdoc candidates, please attach your CV and the name of two people who could provide letters of recommendation. You should submit this as well to the official ICFO applications’ website, where you will find more details on the positions.
PhD and postdoc positions
Ideally, we are looking for PhD applicants who have already worked in a laser lab before, or have a background in quantum optics, atomic physics or condensed-matter physics. Knowledge of some of the relevant technologies such as vacuum, electronics, optics or programming is certainly a plus, but motivation to work in a team is as important. You should be enthusiastic about setting up and conducting challenging experiments at the forefront of both fundamental quantum mechanics and technology.
For postdocs, we are seeking for candidates with prior experience in quantum gases, atomic physics or quantum optics. We offer the opportunity to play a key role in planning and conducting experiments, either on our existing machines or on the development of the new lab. We provide access to excellent technical facilities, and the possibility to work in a stimulating theoretical environment.
Master theses
Are you looking for a challenging project in experimental quantum optics or ultracold quantum gases? A Master thesis is a good opportunity to enter the field and learn more about our interdisciplinary research at the crossing between quantum optics and condensed-matter physics.
We are seeking for candidates with a good background in quantum mechanics and optics, and a strong interest in learning more about ultracold atoms. Besides students from the Barcelona Master in Quantum Science and Technology, Master in Photonics and Master of Multidisciplinary Research in Experimental Sciences, we also welcome applicants from other Masters in Spain and abroad.
Check our Master thesis proposals for 2022-2023 if you are interested: MasterProjects_2022.
Bachelor theses and undergraduate internships
Are you interested in learning more about the exciting field of ultracold quantum gases and the experimental techniques that we use to cool down atomic gases close to absolute zero? We offer motivated students the opportunity to participate in the construction of our ultracold quantum gas experiment through a shorter-term project.
We propose final degree projects (Trabajo de Fin de Grado) for students in physics and physics engineering, as well as other related engineering studies in the Barcelona area. Projects can be more fundamental or technology-oriented, depending on your background, interests and degree requirements.
If you are french and are looking for a stage (M1 or M2), note that we are at least partially a french speaking lab. Every year we host stagiaires from France in the group (ENS Cachan, X), and are always happy to do that again.
We also offer undergraduate internships. They are a good way to get hands-on experimental physics and technology experience and develop your own project in a small team of Master students, PhD students and postdocs. In the summer there is the opportunity to participate in the ICFO summer fellows’ program, but we can also host students during the rest of the year.
Possible projects in our group include:
- Laser system development: construction of lasers and tapered amplifiers, polarization and fiber optics
- Spectroscopy and frequency stabilization of lasers
- Ultra-high vacuum technology and computer assisted design
- Electronics: from PID and feedback control loops to high-power circuits
- Radio-frequency and micro-wave generation and antennae
- Control system design (both software and hardware)
- Development of optical imaging systems
- Construction of magnetic field coils, and measurement and stabilization of magnetic fields
- Optical magnetometry
- Generation of arbitrary potentials with digital micromirror devices
- Tunable-spacing optical lattices
- Aberration correction with spatial light modulators
- Development of atomic sources
- Frequency stabilization of lasers to ultrastable optical cavities
For a more detailed description of what we do, please have a look at our research and publication pages, as well as to this collection of reference materials.