About the project
This project will develop next-generation metasurfaces for physical artificial intelligence (Physical AI), where sensing, computation, and decision-making are directly embedded into the physical hardware.
Metasurfaces are planar nanostructures capable of manipulating the amplitude, phase, and polarisation of light, enabling ultra-compact optical systems beyond the limits of conventional optics. In parallel, Physical AI is emerging as a new technological paradigm in which intelligent functionality is implemented directly within physical systems, reducing latency, power consumption, and computational overhead compared with conventional digital processing pipelines.
This project aims to combine these two frontiers by developing metasurface-based optical processors and sensors capable of performing intelligent inference directly in the optical domain. Potential applications include:
- intelligent 3D endoscopy
- robotics
- autonomous sensing
- wearable and consumer electronics
- compact imaging systems capable of extracting high-level information at the point of capture
The project builds on recent funding from the EPSRC, the Royal Society, and the Leverhulme Trust, combining advanced nanofabrication, machine-learning-driven optical design and international collaboration.
You'll investigate machine-learning-assisted metasurface design, enabling the co-optimisation of optical functionality and AI tasks such as feature extraction, classification, wavefront sensing, and depth inference. Devices will be realised using the University of Southampton’s world-class nanofabrication facilities, supporting a pathway toward scalable and manufacturable intelligent optical hardware.
The project provides strong interdisciplinary training across:
- computational photonics and inverse design
- nanofabrication and metasurface engineering
- optical system design and characterisation
- machine learning for physical systems.
This project is conducted in collaboration with leading international partners including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, and Nanyang Technological University. There will also be opportunities for collaboration with industrial partners, including potential extended international research visits in the later stages of the PhD.
The School of Electronics and Computer Science is committed to promoting equality, diversity inclusivity as demonstrated by our Athena SWAN award. We welcome all applicants regardless of their gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or age, and will give full consideration to applicants seeking flexible working patterns and those who have taken a career break. The University has a generous maternity policy, onsite childcare facilities, and offers a range of benefits to help ensure employees’ well-being and work-life balance. The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and has been awarded the Platinum EcoAward.
