PhD
Experience a stimulating intellectual environment and gain industry ready skills doing a PhD at Paihau—Robinson
PhD students at Paihau—Robinson are integral to our project team. They engage in collaborative research work within a research area alongside their academic learning work. The unique practical experience we offer students is highly sought-after by employers in New Zealand and overseas, who are looking for graduates with hands-on skills as well as recognised academic qualifications.
Graduates who have studied with Paihau—Robinson Research Institute find they can introduce the new technology and capability they have learned with us readily in their jobs. Their experience in project management often sees them advance to leadership positions within industry.
PhD research scholarships
Research grants fund these projects and include money for a research students. Current scholarships include:
Superconducting bearings for high-speed machines
Supervisor: Dr James Storey
High power-density superconducting motors and generators are being actively studied as solutions for powering future large-scale electric aircraft. At Robinson Research Institute we have recently constructed and tested a high-speed superconducting motor/generator at up to 18 000 revolutions per minute (rpm). Now the goal is to translate this technology into our motor.
This project will concern the design, build and evaluation of a suitable mag-lev bearing for our prototype motor.
For more information see our scholarships website page.
Novel magneto-thermal catalysts for CO2 hydrogenation
Supervisor: Dr Chris Bumby
A circular CO2 economy requires the capture and conversion of carbon dioxide into useful products and materials. But this is complicated by the high chemical stability of carbon dioxide. One promising approach is catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 to small organic molecules such as methane or methanol, which can then be used as precursors for more complex large molecules and polymers. However, CO2 hydrogenation typically requires high temperatures in order to provide sufficient energy to initiate the reaction. The very high energy costs associated with heating input and output flows mean that this approach is not presently economically feasible.
This PhD project will investigate a new approach to catalytic CO2 hydrogenation, using novel magneto-thermal core-shell catalyst micro/nanoparticles.
For more information see our scholarships website page.
Powering the next generation of superconducting devices
Supervisor: Dr Dominic Moseley
Explore and optimise a range of flux pump configurations, mechanisms, and designs. This will be a multi-disciplinary challenge driven by Robinson Research Institute’s growing understanding of the underlying physics, our vast experience of real-world systems, and the wide range of experimental and computational tools we have developed.
For more information see our scholarships website page.
Superconducting power supplies: Enabling sustainable fusion energy and electric aerospace technologies
Supervisor: Dr Adam Francis and Prof. Rod Badcock,
Applied high temperature superconductivity research is ushering in a new era of electrification. Superconductors are able to conduct enormous currents with little to no resistive losses making them ideal for use in high field magnets used in new and exciting tech such as:
- fusion generators
- all electric long-haul aeroplanes
- magnetoplasmadynamic thrusters for long distance space flight.
At Robinson we specialise in the application all of these technologies and more, and have a deep understanding of their demands, the most important of which is arguably power. We are the front runners in the race towards reliable high current superconducting power supplies colloquially known as flux pumps. As of yet no flux pumps capable of delivering above 10 kiloamps to a large inductive load exist, we are aiming to smash that ceiling and we have the means to do it. These power supplies unlock the true potential of all superconducting technologies and will bring superconductivity into the forefront of people’s lives, whilst helping to create a greener future. If you are interested in helping us achieve this ambitious goal and have a strong background in physics and/or electrical/electronics engineering, consider completing a PhD at Robinson Research Institute, Wellington, New Zealand.
For more information see our scholarships website page.
Wellington Doctoral Scholarship
You might be eligible for a postgraduate schoalrship based on academic merit. Apply for a doctoral scholarship in March, July, or November.
MacDiarmid Institute PhD research scholarships
You can apply for a research project with The MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology.
MacDiarmid Institute PhD Scholarships
PhD candidate comment
I've learned a lot about superconductivity and electron microscopy from people with quite different areas of expertise.