PhD Position : A way toward rotating quantum turbulence

COFUND QuanG; France; Sur place; EUR 27 000 - 32 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

COFUND QuanG in Grenoble invites applications for a First Stage Researcher PhD position in physics, exploring quantum vortices in a rotating superfluid using a helium II cryostat and micron-sized tracer particles, aiming to reconstruct 3D vortex dynamics and turbulence.

The PhD candidate will collaborate with theorists, participate in regular team meetings, and join the QuanG2 PhD Call, a three-year funded program under Horizon Europe, with opportunities for international training.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification by the deadline.
• MSCA mobility rule must be complied with: no more than 12 months in France in the last 36 months.
• No doctoral degree yet; not a current employee of the host laboratory.
• No nationality or age restrictions.

Responsabilités

• Carry out an experimental study of the turbulent regime (C).
• Collaborate with theorists to compare experiments with state-of-the-art numerical simulations.
• Participate in regular scientific meetings within the QuanG2 team.

Connaissances

Collaborative work

Scientific communication

Formation

Master’s degree or equivalent

Description du poste

Organisation/Company COFUND QuanG Research Field Physics Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 7 Sep 2026 - 12:00 (Europe/Paris) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Offer Starting Date 1 Feb 2027 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Horizon Europe – COFUND Reference Number 101261699 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

General Scope:
Quantum vortices, thin defects of the macroscopic quantum order, are the elementary blocks of all
superfluid flows. The goal of our project is to investigate them through direct visualization. At Institut
Néel, we have developed a one-of-a-kind helium II cryostat capable of “decorating” these vortices with micron-sized solid-dihydrogen particles under controlled and reproducible experimental conditions (See Fig.1). By combining three high-speed cameras with a high-sensitivity, high-resolution camera, we can reconstruct the three-dimensional trajectories of particles trapped on vortex cores. Moreover, the cryostat and its instrumentation are mounted on a rotating platform, enabling the generation of vortex arrays aligned with the rotation axis, a state analogous to an Abrikosov lattice in superconductors. This well-defined canonical state with no counterpart in classical fluids will serve as the initial configuration for this PhD project (see [1], [2] and [3]), which aims to explore dynamical processes that lead to the destruction of the ordered vortex lattice and trigger the onset of quantum turbulence in the rotating frame.

PhD Subject:
By hydrodynamically perturbing a steady-state vortex network, we have identified three regimes (see Fig. 2): a first one (A), in which the lattice remains insensitive to the perturbation; a second one (B), in which waves propagate along the quantized vortices; and a third one (C), which is a disordered, turbulent regime. These different regimes define a way toward rotating quantum turbulence. The PhD candidate will carry out a detailed experimental study of the turbulent regime (C). In this regime, particles do not remain continuously trapped on the vortices. However, as shown by previous work [4], the particle velocity statistics retain signatures of vortex–particle interactions. The study will exploit the unique competition between rotation and turbulence in our apparatus: the rotation tends to polarize the vortex tangle and to leave the imprint of this anisotropy in the particle velocity statistics. We will work in close collaboration with theorists to compare state-of-the-art numerical simulations [5] with experimental data.

This project is part of a wider research program supported by the ANR project QuantumVIW, which
brings together experts in experimental and theoretical hydrodynamics. The PhD student will engage in regular scientific meetings within the team.

Applicants must hold a Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification by the application deadline and must not already hold a doctoral degree. Applicants must also comply with the MSCA mobility rule: they must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in France for more than 12 months during the 36 months immediately preceding the application deadline. Applicants must not be current employees of the host laboratory. There are no nationality or age restrictions.

Selection process

Applications must be submitted through the QuanG2 online application platform by 7 September 2026 at 12:00 PM (Paris time). After the application deadline, all applications will first undergo an eligibility check. Eligible applications will then be reviewed during the pre-selection phase, scheduled for mid-October 2026. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to online interviews at the end of October 2026. Candidates selected following this first interview stage will then be invited to in-person interviews in Grenoble in early December 2026, with the final selection taking place after these interviews. All candidates will be informed of the outcome of the selection process following the final stage.

Additional comments

About the QuanG2 PhD Call

This PhD position is offered as part of the QuanG2 PhD Call for Applications, a doctoral programme coordinated by Université Grenoble Alpes and dedicated to training the next generation of researchers in quantum science and technology. The programme offers fully funded three-year PhD positions within the Grenoble quantum research ecosystem, providing doctoral candidates with a high-level international research environment and dedicated funding for their research and training activities.

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