The ATLAS group at the Niels Bohr Institute invites applicants for a PhD fellowship in experimental particle physics, on the topic of ‘Discoveries with the new LHC run’, focusing on the study of anomalous properties of B hadrons  at the ATLAS experiment. The PhD fellowship is funded by the Danish Research Foundation.

Start date is expected to be 1 December 2022 or as soon as possible thereafter.

The project
The LHC will restart data taking in May 2022, for its third Run. This provides a unique opportunity to do new measurements of B hadrons properties with the ATLAS experiment. Recent results from the LHCB experiment point to lepton flavour universality violation effects. If these effects are indeed confirmed, they would seem to point to new, beyond-standard-model physics. ATLAS is sensitive to such effects, and therefore will help to confirm or refute the discrepancies, and possibly point out which new physics is behind them. This research project at NBI aims at investigating lepton flavour violating effects in B hadron decays with the ATLAS Run 3 data and possibly point to new physics.

The Phd student will join the ATLAS NBI group, and Assoc. Prof. S.Xella, and  work in the ATLAS experiment’s B physics program, focusing on searches for lepton universaility violation effects.

Who are we looking for?
We are looking for candidates within the field(s) of particle physics.  Applicants should have a background from physics, preferably with knowledge in experimental particle physics. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated curiosity and independence in project work, knowledge in programming and preferably experience in software development, and be happy to work in an international experiment and travel to CERN on occasions for helping in taking data or presenting scientific results to the ATLAS collaboration.

Our group and research- and what do we offer?
The ATLAS group at the Niels Bohr Institute is composed of one Professor Emeritus, four Associate Professors, two Assistant professors, and several master and bachelor students. The group is involved in detector and trigger upgrade for the HL-LHC, as well as operation of TRT in LHC Run 3 and electron/photon reconstruction software development. The group is involved in several analyses, on lepton flavour and universality violation measurements as well as Higgs rare decays and forward physics. The ATLAS group is part of the research section on subatomic physics , which includes also activities in the ALICE and IceCube experiments and particle physics phenomenology (https://nbi.ku.dk/english/research/experimental-particle-physics/)

The group is a part of the Niels Bohr Institute, which is the Physics Department at the Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. We are located in Copenhagen.

We offer creative and stimulating working conditions in dynamic and international research environment. Our research facilities include modern laboratories at the Institute, including a clean room and a lab for testing  modules and  power converters of new  silicon strip detectors designed for the high luminosity LHC period, and access to the CERN laboratory and the ATLAS experiment, via membership.

Principal supervisor is Associate Professor Stefania Xella, Niels Bohr Institute, xella@nbi.dk, 0045 35325329

The PhD programme
Depending of your level of education, you can undertake the PhD programme as either:

Option A: A three year full-time study within the framework of the regular PhD programme (5+3 scheme), if you already have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish master’s degree.

Option B: An up to five year full-time study programme within the framework of the integrated MSc and PhD programme (the 3+5 scheme), if you do not have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish master´s degree – but you have an education equivalent to a Danish bachelors´s degree.

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Option A: Getting into a position on the regular PhD programme

Qualifications needed for the regular programme
To be eligible for the regular PhD programme, you must have completed a degree programme, equivalent to a Danish master’s degree (180 ECTS/3 FTE BSc + 120 ECTS/2 FTE MSc) related to the subject area of the project, e.g. particle physics. For information of eligibility of completed programmes, see General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database.

Terms of employment in the regular programme
Employment as PhD fellow is full time and for maximum 3 years.

Employment is conditional upon your successful enrolment as a PhD student at the PhD School at the Faculty of SCIENCE, University of Copenhagen. This requires submission and acceptance of an application for the specific project formulated by the applicant.

Terms of appointment and payment accord to the agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. The position is covered by the Protocol on Job Structure.

Option B: Getting into a position on the integrated MSc and PhD programme

Qualifications needed for the integrated MSc and PhD programme
If you do not have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish master´s degree, you might be qualified for the integrated MSc and PhD programme, if you have an education equivalent to a relevant Danish bachelor´s degree. Here you can find out, if that is relevant for you: General assessments for specific countries and Assessment database.  

Terms of the integrated programme
To be eligible for the integrated scholarship, you are (or are eligible to be) enrolled at one of the faculty’s master programmes in Physics, preferably in the Quantum or Computational Physics specialisations.

Students on the integrated programme will enroll as PhD students simultaneously with completing their enrollment in this MSc degree programme.

The duration of the integrated programme is up to five years, and depends on the amount of credits that you have passed on your MSc programme. For further information about the study programme, please see: www.science.ku.dk/phd, “Study Structures”.

Until the MSc degree is obtained, (when exactly two years of the full 3+5 programme remains), the grant will be paid partly in the form of 48 state education grant portions (in Danish: “SU-klip”) plus salary for work (teaching, supervision etc.) totalling a workload of 150 working hours per year.
A PhD grant portion is currently (2022) DKK 6.397 before tax.

When you have obtained the MSc degree, you will transfer to the salary-earning part of the scholarship for a period of two years. At that point, the terms of employment and payment will be according to the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State (AC). The position is covered by the Protocol on Job Structure.

Responsibilities and tasks in both PhD programmes

• Complete and pass the MSc education in accordance with the curriculum of the MSc programme (ONLY when you are attending the integrated MSc and PhD programme)
• Carry through an independent research project under supervision
• Complete PhD courses corresponding to approx. 30 ECTS / ½ FTE
• Participate in active research environments, including a stay at another research institution, preferably abroad
• Teaching and knowledge dissemination activities
• Write scientific papers aimed at high-impact journals
• Write and defend a PhD thesis on the basis of your project

We are looking for the following qualifications:

• Professional qualifications relevant to the PhD project
• Relevant publications
• Relevant work experience
• Other relevant professional activities
• Curious mind-set with a strong interest in particle physics
• Good language skills

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Application and Assessment Procedure

 Your application including all attachments must be in English and submitted electronically by clicking APPLY NOW below.

Please include: 

• Motivated letter of application (max. one page)
• Your motivation for applying for the PhD in the topic announced, and for doing the PhD at NBI
• Curriculum vitae including information about your education, experience, language skills and other skills relevant for the position
• Original diplomas for Bachelor of Science or Master of Science and transcript of grade records in the original language, including an authorized English translation if issued in another language than English or Danish. If not completed, a certified/signed copy of a recent transcript of records or a written statement from the institution or supervisor is accepted.
• Publication list (if possible)
• Reference letters (if available)

Application deadline:
The deadline for applications is 14. August 2022, 23:59 GMT +2

We reserve the right not to consider material received after the deadline, and not to consider applications that do not live up to the abovementioned requirements.

The further process
After deadline, a number of applicants will be selected for academic assessment by an unbiased expert assessor. You are notified, whether you will be passed for assessment.

The assessor will assess the qualifications and experience of the shortlisted applicants with respect to the above mentioned research area, techniques, skills and other requirements. The assessor will conclude whether each applicant is qualified and, if so, for which of the two models. The assessed applicants will have the opportunity to comment on their assessment. You can read about the recruitment process at https://employment.ku.dk/faculty/recruitment-process/.

Questions
For specific information about the PhD fellowship, please contact the principal supervisor.

General information about PhD study at the Faculty of SCIENCE is available at the PhD School’s website: https://www.science.ku.dk/phd/.

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the surrounding community and invites all regardless of personal background to apply for the position.APPLY NOW

Part of the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU), and among Europe’s top-ranking universities, the University of Copenhagen promotes research and teaching of the highest international standard. Rich in tradition and modern in outlook, the University gives students and staff the opportunity to cultivate their talent in an ambitious and informal environment. An effective organisation – with good working conditions and a collaborative work culture – creates the ideal framework for a successful academic career.

Info

Application deadline: 14-08-2022

Employment start: 01-12-2022

Working hours: Full time

Department/Location: Niels Bohr Institutet