M-2464 PHD IN PIEZOELECTRIC CERAMICS FOR ENERGY HARVESTING

at  Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology LIST

ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT RESEARCH? SO ARE WE! COME AND JOIN US

The Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) is a Research and Technology Organization (RTO) active in the fields of materials, environment and IT. By transforming scientific knowledge into technologies, smart data and tools, LIST empowers citizens in their choices, public authorities in their decisions and businesses in their strategies.
In 2024, LIST and Goodyear signed the second phase of their partnership, 2024-2029, building on the outcomes of their previous collaboration and entering new technological areas as well. Goodyear-LIST partnership 2.0 embraces Luxembourg’s National priorities, such as Sustainability, Digital transformation and Circular economy, through the execution of five Strategic Research Programs: Data Science for Tires, Tire as a Sensor, End-of-Life Tire Valorization, Sustainable Materials for Next Generation of Pneumatic Tires, Structure-Process-Properties Relationships.
The Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) in partnership with Goodyear and with the support of an Industrial Partnership Block Grant (IPBG) from the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) will drive significant research and development focused on next-generation sustainable tire materials including new types of polymers and rubbers.
As part of it, we are currently looking for a PhD student in piezoelectric ceramics for energy harvesting.

HOW WILL YOU CONTRIBUTE?

This position is mainly located at LIST premises in Belvaux (Luxembourg), with a significant part of time spent in Goodyear Luxembourg Innovation Center in Colmar-Berg (Luxembourg).
For this position, we are looking for a PhD student in piezoelectric ceramics for energy harvesting. Rolling tires are source of mechanical energy in form of strain and vibrations that could be transformed into electrical energy and power sensors and electronics used in “smart tires”. One of the approaches used for energy harvesting is the piezoelectric effect. Materials that show piezoelectric properties transform strain variation in electrical charge. These materials can be ceramics, such as Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 or polymers, such as Polyvinylidene Difluoride (PVDF). To efficiently use the available mechanical energy in tires and induce strain in the piezoelectric material, it is essential to develop an adapted harvester’s design. In addition, harvester’s signal conditioning plays an important role. To harvest enough electrical energy, all three points: material properties, harvesters design and signal conditioning, must be addressed. This PhD position is mainly focused on optimisation of ceramic based piezoelectric energy harvester for tires as well as on development of dedicated electronics for signal conditioning. Several challenges will be addressed to achieve targeted values of power.

APPLY ONLINE

This position is part of our Research Programme “Tire as a Sensor”, in which we are looking for 4 PhD candidates and 3 post docs all together.
Please apply ONLINE formally through the HR system. Applications by email will not be considered.

Please refer the Job description for details