2025 PhD Opportunities

Join our dynamic School of Mathematics and Physics at Queen's University Belfast! We're seeking exceptional candidates for full-time PhD positions across cutting-edge research areas, from Astrophysics to Mathematical Sciences!

Our diverse international community welcomes talent from across the globe, creating an enriching research environment where both full-time and part-time students thrive. You'll be part of a growing network of researchers making real impact in their fields.

Ready to start your research journey? Applications close Friday 7th February (unless otherwise stated). We encourage you to connect with potential project supervisors before applying.

Jump to the centre you are interested in

ARC

Astrophysics Research Centre

CLMI

Centre for Light-Matter Interactions

Postgraduate student in a room full of complex machinery

CQMT

Centre for Quantum Materials and Technology

MSRC

Mathematical Sciences Research Centre

ARC

Astrophysics Research Centre

Click here for more information and learn how to apply

Title	Supervisor(s)
Observations of Solar Flares in Lyman-Alpha Emission	Dr Ryan Milligan
Supernovae: theoretical modelling of light curves and spectra	Prof. Stuart Sim
A Dirac R-matrix approach to the determination of opacities	Prof. Connor Ballance
Modelling of neutron star mergers: Fundamental atomic structure, electron-impact excitation and recombination calculations in support of collisional-radiative modelling and radiative transport	Prof. Connor Ballance Prof. Catherine Ramsbottom Prof. Stuart Sim
Into the Rubinverse: Exploring the Solar System with the First Data from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory	Dr Meg Schwamb
Investigating exoplanet systems with the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect	Dr Ernst de Mooij
Rapid astrophysical explosions from neutron star and black hole interactions	Dr Matt Nicholl
Longitudinal analysis of athlete development in youth team sports	Prof. David Jess

CLMI

Centre for Light-Matter Interactions

Click below for more information and learn how to apply

Click here for more information and learn how to apply

Title	Supervisor(s)
High-quality positron and x-ray sources for EuPRAXIA	Prof. Gianluca Sarri
Femtosecond radiobiology with very high energy electron beams	Prof. Gianluca Sarri
Synthesizing 3D Light Fields for Manipulating Chiral Matter	Dr Jason Greenwood
The Coherent Harmonic Focus - High Harmonic Generation in the Multi-Petawatt Regime	Prof. Brendan Dromey
Carbon ion acceleration for radiotherapy applications	Prof. Marco Borghesi
Relativistic attosecond sources from intense multi-colour laser pulses	Dr Mark Yeung
Radiation damage in the wide band gap semiconductor Ga₂O₃	Dr Lorenzo Stella
Probing dipole instabilities in the ultrafast ionization of molecules	Dr Daniel Dundas
Mapping the transition from photo-ionisation to strong-field ionisation	Dr Andrew Brown
Spatio-temporal coupling in high intensity lasers	Dr Matthew Streeter
Computational pump-probe spectroscopy involving X-ray laser fields	Prof. Hugo van der Hart
PhD in Theoretical many-body physics and quantum chemistry: Many-body theory and computation of low-energy antimatter interactions with matter and light [within ERC-funded research group]	Dr Dermot Green
Line identifications for heavy elements of importance in kilonova modelling	Prof. David Riley

CQMT

Centre for Quantum Materials & Technology

Click below for more information and learn how to apply

Click here for more information and learn how to apply

Funded Projects:

Title	Supervisor(s)
Disrupting Magnons Using Ferroelectric Domains	Prof. Marty Gregg
PNN: Micromagnetic simulations and direct visualisation of artificial spin ice	Dr Solveig Felton
“Hard” metals: Looking for alternative material for high temperature applications	Dr Lorenzo Stella Prof. Robert Bowman

Title

Supervisor(s)

Disrupting Magnons Using Ferroelectric Domains

Prof. Marty Gregg

PNN: Micromagnetic simulations and direct visualisation of artificial spin ice

Dr Solveig Felton

“Hard” metals: Looking for alternative material for high temperature applications

Dr Lorenzo Stella

Prof. Robert Bowman

Funding Awaited:

Title	Supervisor(s)
2D Materials Enhanced Surface Plasmon Resonance	Dr Fumin Huang
Evaluating thermal stability of near-field transducer materials	Dr Miryam Arredondo
Combined First-Principles and Machine-Learning Approach to Real-Time Nonlinear Spectroscopies	Dr Myrta Gruening
Rediscovering the Fundamental Science of the Archetypal Antiferroelectrics at small scales	Dr Amit Kumar
Exploring domain continuity in polycrystalline ferroics	Dr Miryam Arredondo
Twistronics: electronic transport with a twist	Prof. Marty Gregg
Simulating Linear and Nonlinear Spectroscopies of Aqueous Systems	Dr David Wilkins
Controlling heat transfer at the nanoscale with ferroic materials	Dr Ray McQuaid
Atomic Defects in Nanomaterials for Integrated Quantum Technologies	Prof Robert Bowman

MSRC

Mathematical Sciences Research Centre

Click below for more information and learn how to apply

Click here for more information and learn how to apply

Funded Projects

Title	Supervisor(s)
Statistical Advances in Health Economic Modelling	Dr Felicity Lamrock
Template-Free MCMC Reconstruction of Single Molecule Imaging Data with Multiple Distinct Structures	Dr Hannah Mitchell
Hierarchical Spatial-Temporal Modelling of Microglia Patterns: Towards Non-Invasive Diagnostics for Neonatal Hypoxia and Neurodegenerative Disorders	Dr Hannah Mitchell
Data-Driven Decisions: Transforming Urgent Care Patient Outcomes and Resource Allocation for the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service	Dr Laura Boyle
Developing a Digital Twin of Paediatric Care in Northern Ireland for Forecasting and Informing Policy Decisions	Prof. Adele Marshall
Predictive modelling of Energy Cost Savings using Smart Meter Data	Prof. Adele Marshall
Mathematical modelling for operational decision-support in the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (Closes 28 February 2025)	Dr Laura Boyle

Non-Funded Projects:

Title	Supervisor(s)
Mathematical models for cancer invasion	Dr Anna Zhigun
Graded rings and toric methods in algebra	Dr Thomas Huettemann
Digital twin for real-time flow management in hospitals	Dr Laura Boyle
Large language models for data mining in software repositories	Dr Zhiwei Lin
Mathematics of infectious diseases	Dr Gabor Kiss

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Mathematics and Physics

2025 PhD Opportunities

Funded Projects:

Funding Awaited:

Funded Projects

Non-Funded Projects:

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