KTH in Stockholm is the largest and oldest technical university in Sweden. No less than one-third of Sweden’s technical research and engineering education capacity at university level is provided by KTH. Education and research spans from natural sciences to all branches of engineering and includes architecture, industrial management and urban planning. There are a total of just over 15,000 first and second level students and more than 1,600 doctoral students. KTH has almost 4,300 employees.

The school of Information and Communication Technology, ICT, conducts research and education at leading international level in material physics, photonics/optics, electronic systems, integrated devices and circuits, as well as communication systems. Our research activity encompasses both basic and applied level. We offer a wide spectrum of educational programs at undergraduate, masters and doctoral level. The ICT School fosters close collaboration with Swedish and international companies and research institutes as well as surrounding associations such as Kista Science City.

Description of the position

The main project goal is to develop state-of-the-art silicon compatible switches and modulators for high-speed (40 Gbit/s + modulation) with small footprint and low energy dissipation for fiber-optic communication and computer interconnect systems. To improve the efficiency of devices, slot waveguide configuration will be investigated. Organic electro-optical materials incorporated in silicon photonic waveguides provide potential means of achieving ultrafast tuning in a very compact device. The optical field intensity in a structure with feature size of the sub-wavelength scale (on the order of 20–180 nm) tends to concentrate within the low-index slot for the polarization perpendicular to the slot. Such a sophisticated design in combination with an enhanced electro-optical response of novel polymer materials (appr 10 times as large as in Lithium Niobate) give orders of magnitude lower power dissipation, a key feature in today’s  systems.

Electro-optical polymers are also applicable for fabrication of active micro-photonic devices, such as optical amplifiers and lasers. Doped with laser dyes or quantum (core-shell) dots/rods of different composition, such materials can provide optical gain with broadband tunability. Strong E-O effect in combination with electric poling of the host polymer material can result in anisotropic enhancement of the optical gain (lasing efficiency) and lasers' tunability. This property is crucial for developing energy- and cost-effective photonics devices, e.g., by means of nano-imprinting lithography. Such components are in high demand in "Lab-on-chip" systems.

Device fabrication will be carried out in an advanced university clean room facility ( www.electrumlab.se/KTHAcreo.aspx ) in Kista near Stockholm, an area prominent for academic and industrial research in the IT technology.

Eligibility and Assessment Criteria

Applicants must hold or be about to receive an MSc degree in optics/photonics, applied physics, electrical engineering, or related areas. Furthermore, the applicant must have:

• Strong academic credentials, written and spoken English proficiency, communication and team-work skills.
• Interest in following subjects:  electro-optics, integrated and waveguide components for photonics, optical communication. Strong motivation to run experimental research.
• Background in several of the following: optics/photonics, micro-optics, light polarization, electromagnetism, fiber optics and optical waveguiding components, microwave engineering.
• Experience with integrated devices (optics and/or microelectronics), waveguide fabrication and testing, measurement methods in optics and fiber optics, as well as basic knowledge of the laser physics and physics of polymers will be considered as advantages.

Employment

Form of employment: Time limited, following the recommendations for PhD program employment in the Higher Education Ordinance (Högskoleförordningen) e.g. ~ 4 years full time studies

Start: According to the agreement
The salary: Follows "KTH:s student salary agreement”

Application

An application (in English) should include:

• Cover letter, one-page summary of your application
• CV including relevant documents demonstrating achievements and experience
• An official copy of the MSc degree certificate and academic transcript
• Two recommendation letters including contact infromation for the reference persons
• Copy of MSc thesis report (in PDF format) and List of publications (if applicable)

Deadline for application is 2012-03-25.
Please specify the reference number I-2012-0040 in the subject line of your application.

Applications via e-mail are to be sent to registrator@ict.kth.se .

The documents shall be sent as PDF attachments if the application is sent in electronically Please do not send any compressed files.

We also accept applications via ordinary post sent to:
KTH – ICT, Registrator
Forum 105
S-164 40 Kista, Sweden

Contact

For more information about the position, please contact
Sergei Popov, Associate Professor
Phone: +46 (0)8 790 4273
Email: sergeip@kth.se

Lars Thylen, Professor
Phone: +46 (0)8 790 4050
Email: lthylen@kth.se

Lech Wosinski, Associate Professor
Phone: +46 (0)8 790 4074
Email: lech@kth.se

Gun Hjertsson, ICT HR manager
Phone: + 46 (0)8 790 4411
Email: gun@kth.se

Union representative

Lars Abrahamson, SACO
Phone: +46 (0)8 790 7058
Email: lars.abrahamsson@ee.kth.se