The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Transformative Meta-optical Systems (TMOS) is currently seeking expressions of interest from prospective PhD research higher degree and MSc coursework students. Students should send an expression of interest to Professor Ken Crozier and/or Professor Ann Roberts – a list of potential projects can be found here. Applications need to be submitted before the 1 October 2024 to be considered in the first round for 2025 so prospective supervisors need to be contacted well before then. Note that entry to the PhD program at the University is highly competitive and only very high achieving students will be encouraged to submit a full application. Information about PhD studies at Melbourne, including eligibility and the application process can be found here and MSc coursework in Physics here.
In work led by PhD student Niken Priscilla, members of the group have been investigating a semi-analytic method for studying the optical properties of arrays of plasmonic nanorods. Our new article – published recently in Optics Express – demonstrates how this method underpins the design of novel metasurfaces using rapid optimisation.
Want to know more about the future role that meta-optics may play in applications ranging from imaging transparent specimens such as unstained biological cells to wavefront recovery for adaptive optics? Students Niken Priscilla and Shaban Sulejman, research fellow Lukas Wesemann and Professor Ann Roberts have recently published a perspective on the optic in ACS Photonics – New Avenues for Phase Imaging: Optical Metasurfaces. The article provides historical context, an overview of current developments and looks to the potential of meta-optics to revolutionise imaging. See article here.
In work just published in Nature Communications, a collaboration between University of Melbourne, CUNY, and RMIT University has demonstrated a metasurface that can be switched between edge detection and producing a conventional image. The device integrates a thin film of VO2 that undergoes a phase change at around 68C altering its optical properties opening up applications in remote sensing and biological imaging. A summary of the work can be found in a TMOS blog post here. Cosmos has also covered the work. Story here.
Work led by Dr Nitu Syed has demonstrated enhanced UV and visible photodetection in ultrathin (< 3nm) nanosheets of SnO2 by integrating plasmonic gold nanoparticles onto their surface. The outcomes have been published in ACS Applied Nano Materials.
Dr Alex Wood and Professor Andy Martin are seeking a research fellow to work on levitated nanodiamonds. Applications close 8 June. Details at: https://jobs.unimelb.edu.au/en/job/916909/research-fellow-in-experimental-levitated-optomechanics. Contact Alex (alexander.wood@unimelb.edu.au) for more information.
Last week in Canberra, PhD student Shaban Sulejman was announced as a 2024 Fulbright Future Scholar and recognized by the US ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy. Shaban will be taking up the scholarship later in the year to work with TMOS Partner Investigator Professor Andrea Alu at CUNY.
In work led by McKenzie Fellow, Dr Nitu Syed, researchers from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Transformative Meta-Optical Systems, have developed a gas sensor using atomically thin transparent two-dimensional (2D) tin dioxide film. The material has a thickness of only 2 nanometres which is 50000 times thinner than a paper. Reducing the thickness to only a few atoms substantially increase the flexibility of the material and makes it ideal for integration into wearable devices such as smartwatches and medical patches. An article about describing this work is here and the originally (open access) article can be accessed by following this link.
Work led by Tim Davis is featured as an Editor’s Pick in the latest Optics Express – link here. We show that by extracting structural information from transmission electron microscopy data, including characteristic disorder parameters, good agreement with spectral specular and non-specular reflectance measurements can be obtained.
The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Transformative Meta-optical Systems (TMOS) is currently seeking expressions of interest from prospective PhD research higher degree and MSc coursework students. Students should send an expression of interest to Professor Ken Crozier and/or Professor Ann Roberts – a list of potential projects can be found here. Applications need to be submitted before the 14 October to be considered in the first round for 2024 so prospective supervisors need to be contacted well before then. Note that entry to the PhD program at the University is highly competitive and only very high achieving students will be encouraged to submit a full application. Information about PhD studies at Melbourne, including eligibility and the application process can be found here and MSc coursework in Physics here.