Postgraduate research project

Interferometry applied to experimental fluid mechanics

Funding
Fully funded (UK only)
Type of degree
Doctor of Philosophy
Entry requirements
2:1 honours degree View full entry requirements
Faculty graduate school
Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences
Closing date

About the project

This PhD project will explore various configurations and applications of interferometry in the context of experimental fluid mechanics. 

Accurate sampling of fluid temperature is extremely important in many areas of industry and research. While many techniques to do so are available, each comes with its own strengths and weaknesses. For example, resistance temperature detector (RTD) sensors are reliable and accurate, but are intrusive and have slow response times.  

Interferometry is a well-established technique in several areas of science and engineering, with a huge potential to deliver highly accurate and fully non-intrusive measurements in fluids. Recent research at the University of Southampton has demonstrated the merits of interferometry for various types of flows such us natural convection, but potential to further enhance experimental fluid mechanics by means of this technique remains largely unexploited.

This PhD project is part of an ongoing collaboration with ETH Zurich, Switzerland and you will join a world-leading research team and environment at the University of Southampton. The project will require computational fluid dynamics simulations. You will have access to Iridis 5, the University's  recently upgraded supercomputer, considered one of the most powerful in the UK.