NOWNano DTC: The North West Nanoscience Doctoral Training Centre

NOWNano DTC: The North West Nanoscience Doctoral Training Centre

NowNano DTC students undertake a four-year doctoral training programme. A major aim of the DTC is to create a cohort of researchers that are able to draw on knowledge from a broad spectrum of sciences and to work in interdisciplinary teams. The challenge is to enable our students to understand the different languages and philosophies of disciplines as diverse as theoretical physics & astronomy and medicine.

The aim of the first six months of the programme is to expose students to the full breadth of nanoscience and nanotechnology and to provide them with the skills and background knowledge that they will need during their Ph.D. projects in order to understand the diverse concepts and knowledge that they will inevitably encounter. To this end, the programme includes not only lecture courses and directed self-study (inquiry-based learning) but also extended (12 weeks-long) laboratory projects covering different aspects of nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Also during this time, students will have an opportunity to learn about the available Ph.D. research projects through presentations by potential supervisors and visits to research labs. It is expected that many projects will be interdisciplinary, with co-supervision by academics from different Schools/Departments, providing students with access to the world-class facilities.

Programme Structure

September to March Year 1:

Students complete three core lecture courses and two optional courses. Two inquiry-based learning projects are set and all students complete the extended lab projects.

Lecture Courses

• Underlying Principles of Nanoscience
• Introduction to Nanoengineering
• Techniques in Nanotechnology
• Fundamentals of Nanoelectronics
• Nanobiomaterials

Extended Lab Projects

• Atomic force microscopy for imaging biological samples
• Carbon Nanotube and Graphene Thin-Film Transistors
• Design, fabrication, and characterization of a nanoscale magnetoresistive device
• Synthesis and Characterisation of Low Dimensional Carbon Particles
• Simulation, fabrication, and characterization of nanodevices
• Synthesis and characterization of semiconductor quantum dots

April Year 1 to end of Year 4: Ph.D. Research Project

The students decide on a project which they will undertake for the rest of the programme. During this time they will also undertake further skills training:

• Business & Enterprise courses
• Presentations at DTC conferences
• Creating exhibits for Manchester Science Festival