M/F PhD position: Development of multifield electromagnetic levitation for characterisation and processing of metallic materials

CNRS - National Center for Scientific Research; France; Sur place; EUR 28 000 - 32 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

SIMaP - Science and Engineering of Materials and Processes, CNRS, Grenoble, invites applications for a PhD student to study electromagnetic levitation with DC magnetic fields within the ANR MultiMAGe project. You will work in a dynamic team at SIMaP, hosted by IMEP-2 doctoral school, Grenoble Alpes.

The PhD thesis focuses on high-temperature thermophysical properties, non-contact techniques and advanced metrology for metals and alloys, with a strong experimental and modelling component.

Qualifications

• Excellent understanding of mass and heat transfer processes (conduction, convection, radiation, diffusion).
• Strong interest in experimental work.
• Good level of English.

Responsabilités

• Pursue experimental investigation of electromagnetic levitation with DC magnetic fields in both horizontal and vertical directions.
• Improve instrumentation and automate the setup for temperature control and data acquisition.

Connaissances

Mass transfer

Heat transfer

Experimental work

Python programming

English language

Outils

Python

Description du poste

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Sciences et Ingénierie, Matériaux, Procédés Research Field Engineering Chemistry Physics Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 8 Oct 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Feb 2027 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

SIMaP - Science and Engineering of Materials and Processes ( https://simap.grenoble-inp.fr ) - is a multidisciplinary laboratory with more than 200 participants from chemistry, physics, materials and fluid mechanics. It is one of the leading laboratories in physical metallurgy and thermodynamics, architectural materials, and materials for microelectronics, electronics and energy applications. SIMaP is a joint research unit administrated by CNRS, University of Grenoble Alpes and Grenoble INP.

The PhD student will work in a very dynamic team having the expertise with processing materials in solid and liquid states using external (magnetic, electric, …) fields.

The PhD thesis will be performed under the IMEP-2 doctoral school at the University of Grenoble Alpes, with a speciality of MEP – Fluid Mechanics, Energy, Process Engineering.

Description of the project.
The thesis is proposed in the frame of the ANR project MultiMAGe which is aimed to develop a versatile experimental setup, based on the coupling of electromagnetic levitation with a DC magnetic field, for the characterization and processing of metals and alloys at high temperatures.
Characterisation of metals in liquid state and study of liquid-solid transformation are essential for initiating or optimising the industrial production, as the latter requires knowledge of high-temperature thermophysical properties of materials as well as an understanding of physico-chemical processes at the free surface, etc.
However, handling liquid metals in a chemically pure state is complicated, because of their high chemical reactivity and high melting temperature, therefore, non-contact techniques are privileged for such studies. Electromagnetic levitation offers certain advantages over other levitation technics (aerodynamics, ultrasonic,…) at is allows relatively large samples to be processed and provides heating of the sample during the levitation via Joule effect.
On a negative side, another intrinsic feature of the EML is the generation of fluid flow within the liquid sample. Under terrestrial conditions, this flow is generally strong and prevails over diffuse heat and mass transfer therefore making measurement of some thermophysical impossible or at least complicate them. Similarly, phase transition is affected by convective heat and mass transport. However, it has been demonstrated that applying a second, DC magnetic field can stabilise the levitating sample and substantially reduce the flow velocity within the liquid. This opens the possibility of performing controlled parametric studies and, ultimately, of extrapolating thermophysical properties towards conditions where convective transport is negligible.
Fundamental questions nevertheless remain regarding the coupling of electromagnetic levitation with the use of a DC magnetic field. In particular, the effects of the intensity, orientation and spatial uniformity of the DC magnetic field on the internal flow and surface oscillations are not yet fully understood. The coupling between fluid flow and heat transfer is also of particular interest for the development of reliable thermophysical-property measurements or well-controlled elaboration process.

Previous developments and open questions.

Objectives of the PhD project.

The objective of the PhD project is to pursue the experimental investigation of electromagnetic levitation coupled with DC magnetic fields, considering both horizontal and vertical direction of the latter.

The work will focus on:

• Amelioration of instrumentation and automatization of the existent setup aimed at better controlling of the temperature of the levitating sample and a speed of data acquisition
• Studying the effect of DC magnetic field of 1T on the oscillation of the droplet using images of the droplet registered with a high-speed camera
• Visualisation of the destabilised droplet with high-speed camera with identification of characteristic frequencies of oscillations aimed to understand the underlying physical mechanism
• Measurement of the thermal expansion of the samples stabilised due to the DC magnetic field
• Determining the condition under which convective heat transport can be sufficiently reduced to enable reliable measurements of selected thermophysical properties
• Developing and validating experimental procedures for the measurement of these properties under controlled thermal and electromagnetic conditions

The experimental studies performed by the PhD candidate will be supported by numerical modelling performed within the hosting team and by a partner team of ANR MultiMAGe.

_Required_:
1 - Excellent understanding of the fundamental processes of mass and heat transfer: conduction, convection, radiation and solute transport (diffusion)
2 - A strong interest in experimental work
3 - Good level of English
_Considered an asset_:
1. Experience in conducting experimental work (experimental internship)
2. Basic understanding of magnetohydrodynamics
3. Knowledge of Python programming
4. Experience in signal and/or image processing
_Personal qualities_:
Independence, organisational skills, attention to detail, the ability to work as part of a team, and good communication and writing skills