About the project
This hands-on, primarily experimental project focuses on developing a novel gas sensor for applications including next generation energy networks, sustainable process monitoring and point of care medical diagnosis.
The key element of our novel gas sensor is a specialty fibre known as hollow core optical fibre. We work on all aspects of these fibres, from fundamentals, including design and fabrication, to applications, where we work with a range of internal and external collaborators.
Hollow core fibres are an exciting platform for gas-light interactions as they can be filled with the target gas sample to provide a huge interaction length between the confined gas molecules and the guided light. This means that using a hollow core fibre for gas sensing opens up a pathway to high sensitivity, multispecies gas detection, which has a range of applications. The sensor will detect Raman scattered light from the gas sample contained in the hollow core fibre which will provide a unique spectral fingerprint of the target gas. In this project, you will explore the potential of this concept in the ultraviolet spectral region, where further sensitivity enhancement is possible.
You will have the opportunity to learn how to design and simulate the properties of these fibres as well as to develop hands-on experience of fibre characterisation and applications. You will work within our research team and have opportunities to develop and test new ideas and to collaborate more broadly with the wide range of researchers working in our department. We will work closely with an industrial partner, and you will spend time working with them to develop a prototype instrument in their facilities. This will provide you with first-hand experience of how academic research can translate into a commercial product and maximise the impact of your research. You will also have opportunities to present your work at international conferences and publish in academic journals.
