About the project
'Smart' phased-array lasers based on computer-controlled, coherently combined optical fibre amplifiers promise to revolutionise materials processing and other important laser applications.
The advantages of these lasers, derive from rapid and flexible control of the beam shape and polarisation. Computer control, through neural networks and machine learning is now emerging as a means to implement and optimise the control.
The Smart Fibre Optics High-Power Photonics (HiPPo) programme is a new EPSRC funded 5-year programme pursuing fibre-based phased-array lasers at the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC).
In collaboration with NKT Photonics, you will research advanced fibre amplifiers and beam combination concepts within this ground-breaking programme. Research topics include:
- low-noise fibre amplifiers and phase control
- fibre nonlinearities and their mitigation
- polarisation management in challenging fibre systems
You will have the opportunity to design and build amplifiers with fibres fabricated in-house in the ORC’s state-of-the-art cleanrooms and laboratories as well as state-of-the-art high-power fibre amplifiers from NKT Photonics.
This is an industrially relevant PhD project, working with a world-leading team. Some of the work may be performed at NKT Photonics in Hamble.
