Join a pioneering research project focused on developing monolithically integrated single photon avalanche detectors (SPAD) coupled with silicon photonic waveguide platforms. SPADs are semiconductor devices that can accurately time the arrival of single photons of light, and they are key to numerous quantum technologies where the properties of photons are used for quantum computation, quantum communication or quantum enhanced sensing [1]. This PhD position is aligned to the UK National Quantum Technology Program’s Phase 3 hubs, Integrated Quantum Networks (IQN) [2] and Quantum Enabled Position, Navigation, and Timing (QEPNT) [3]. These hubs are supported by over £100M in industrial backing, offering exceptional opportunities for networking and potential future employment in high-tech industries. 

Why This Research Matters 

This research aims to enable cutting-edge quantum devices. Integrating SPADs with photonic integrated circuits (PICs) can enable highly efficient single photon detection with extremely high timing accuracy, and enable complex optical circuits to be interfaced to these detectors. Such technologies are key for securing communication networks with Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), a technique that can provide unbreakable encryption for information sent over optical communication links [4]. The establishment of such quantum networks is the central role of the IQN Quantum Technology Hub (https://iqnhub.org/), which your work would be aligned to. The development of a Quantum PIC platform however, would also have applications in scalable quantum computing [5], as well as low-light fluorescence imaging for biomedical diagnostics, chip scale surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy for chemical and molecular detection, and quantum enhanced LIDAR applications.  

Research objectives: 

• Develop highly efficient waveguide geometry SPADs based on Si/Ge-on-Si material platforms [6] 

• Engineering low-loss Si3N4 optical couplers to the SPAD and to optical fiber/free space 

Research Training: 

• Device Modelling: You will learn how to design and optimise process flows for integrating SPADs with passive photonic waveguide devices, using advanced simulation tools to enhance performance such as reducing insertion loss, electronic noise and maximising single photon detection efficiency. 

• Advanced Fabrication: Gain hands-on training in fabrication methods such as electron-beam lithography within the state-of-the-art James Watt Nanofabrication Centre (https://www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/jwnc/). 

• Experimental Characterisation: Training and access to specialised electro-optic laboratories that contain over £2M of equipment for the characterisation of key SPAD and photonic integrated circuit metrics.  

What We Offer 

• Collaboration with industrial partners in the quantum technology ecosystem. 

• Access to world-class facilities and training in advanced simulation, fabrication, and characterisation techniques. 

• Opportunities to publish in high-impact journals and present at leading international conferences. 

• Support for career development in academia or high-tech industries.