2 Fully funded PhD candidate positions in MSCA Doctoral Network MATCH

MATCH Doctoral Network, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) project funded by the European Union, is currently recruiting highly motivated candidates for fully funded PhD positions across top European institutions in the field of Multicore Fiber Applications and Technologies.

DC 4 – Thesis title: Innovative MCF amplifier approaches for telecommunications

Supervisors: Dr. P. Roy (UNILIM)

Ultra-high-speed fiber optic telecommunications are now entering the era of multi-core fibers to meet the world’s ever-increasing demand for data transfer. Signal regeneration is a key function of future networks, and each core, and eventually each mode, must benefit from controlled gain, so as not to create a gain difference between cores, and to guarantee the balance of the system as a whole. While rare earths, and erbium in particular, are well known to designers of fiber-optic amplifiers for telecommunications, we propose a dual approach. First, gain equalization between the different cores will be addressed by looking for ways to homogenize the intensity distribution of pumping power in the cladding, while maintaining an active fiber geometry (doped with erbium) identical to that of the line fiber. Secondly, we will evaluate the potential of a cladding-pumped Raman amplifier, once again seeking to optimize efficiency and gain equalization in the various cores by designing special optical fibers.

Planned secondment(s):

• HCT: Dr. K. Schuster M21-26 (6 months duration) “Cylinder drilling, geometrical adaptation towards smaller preforms”
• Iscte: Prof. T. Alves M41-M42 (2 months duration) “Experimental demonstration of long-reach amplified MCF systems”

DC 12 – Thesis title: Design of application-aware high-capacity optical networks

Supervisors: Dr. J. Pedro (INF/Nokia); Prof. L. Cancela (Iscte)

Infinera is a global supplier of innovative open optical networking solutions and advanced optical semiconductors that enable carriers, cloud operators, governments, and enterprises to scale network bandwidth, accelerate service innovation, and automate network operations. The Optical Architecture Group (OAG) of Infinera will host doctoral candidate (DC) 12 of MATCH. The DC accepting this position will have the opportunity to get extensive training on system- and network-level design and operation of next-generation high-capacity optical networks while embedded in a vibrant industrial environment. The research and development work will consider single- and multi-band (MB) multi-core fiber (MCF) systems supporting both traditional telecom services and non-telecom services such as sensing. Node architectures suitable to realize these systems and accurate and scalable optical performance models will be investigated with the aim to gain critical insight on the most adequate solutions to accommodate future capacity requirements in optical fiber networks (e.g., from the impact of the AI/ML applications in data center interconnection) and on the feasibility of leveraging the same fiber infrastructure to support other advanced services. The DC will also benefit from secondments at key research institutes / universities, further complementing his/her know-how in the field. Candidates must have obtained an MSc Degree from a recognized institution and in a relevant field for this position (e.g., in electrical engineering, physics or computer science). The selected candidate will be enrolled in a PhD degree program at Iscte.

Planned secondment(s):

• Iscte: Prof. L. Cancela M13-15 (3 months duration) “Development of models for the evaluation of MCF specific transmission effects”
• IT: Dr. R. Nogueira M20-21 (2 months duration) “Training on the modelling of non-telecom applications in high capacity systems”
• UNILIM: Prof. P. Roy M29-32 (1 month) “Training on setting-up a MCF transmission system”

For more information and how to apply, visit:

https://match.iscte-iul.pt/phd-candidates-profiles/

https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/jobs/376865

https://match.iscte-iul.pt/partners/

MATCH consortium is looking for outstanding and motivated Doctoral Candidates (DCs) with the skills, knowledge, and enthusiasm to develop innovative and breakthrough research in the field of multicore fibre (MCF) technology.

Research Field:

Engineering » Electrical engineering

Physics » Optics