Solid State Materials

The School of Chemistry from Cardiff University has developed a particular strength in Solid State Materials Chemistry, with a research group dedicated to this exciting area of study. As part of the Chemistry (PhD/MPhil) programme, students can conduct their research within this group.

Overview

On the Solid State Materials  programme from Cardiff University , research is focused on understanding fundamental properties of materials, developing and advancing new aspects of experimental techniques for investigating these properties, and exploring the potential for developing applications of the materials under investigation.

Projects

• Each  year the School of Chemistry welcomes applicants who have secured funding from  external sponsors, or who are self-funded.

• We have an extensive list of projects that are available. Details for each project can be obtained by  contacting the member of academic staff directly.  Please state which project(s) you would like to be considered for on your application form.

• In the first instance, you should submit a CV & Covering Letter to the project supervisor detailing which projects you would like to be considered for.

• Formal applications should then be submitted via Cardiff University’s Online Application Service. In the research proposal section of your application, please specify the project title and supervisors of this project.

• In answer to the question ‘How do you plan to fund your studies?’, please specify the details and upload any documents providing the evidence (for example: letter of confirmation of scholarship).

Program Structure

Current research projects include:

• The development of a fundamental understanding of structural and dynamic properties of molecular solids (including solid inclusion compounds, incommensurate solids, hydrogen-bonded systems and disordered materials) and of crystallization processes of these materials.

• Quantifying the interactions between the components of ‘soft matter’ systems, to understand and control their structure and dynamics, with particular emphasis on self-assembling gels and foams, the protection of actives via conjugation.

• The development and application of new aspects of experimental techniques for elucidating properties of materials – topics of particular interest include advances in EPR and ENDOR spectroscopy in a range of novel areas, the development and application of new techniques for structure determination using powder X-ray diffraction data, and fundamental and applied aspects of the phenomenon of X-ray birefringence.

Admission requirements