Thread: PhD positions in multidisciplinary studies of Earth's core

Started: 2021-08-31 09:36:58
Last activity: 2021-08-31 09:36:58
We invite applications for two funded PhD student positions for an NSF
funded project spanning *high-pressure mineral physics*, *computational
fluid dynamics*, and *seismology*, aimed at studying Earth’s core. This
project is a collaboration between Earth and Planetary Sciences at *UC
Berkeley* and the Department of Geology and Geophysics at the *University
of Utah*. The student focusing on mineral physics will be at the University
of Utah, while the student focusing on computational fluid dynamics and
seismology will be hosted at UC Berkeley. This interdisciplinary project
will touch on: geomagnetism, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics,
crystallography, and geophysics. *The research aims to explore how the
mineralogical properties of solid iron controlled how it crystallised, and
how this influenced the outer core convection and the seismic velocity
structure of the inner core*.

The applicants will work under the supervision of *Bruce Buffett* and *Dan
Frost *(UC Berkeley) and *Lowell Miyagi* (University of Utah). We emphasise
the collaborative nature of this project. Students will be encouraged to
engage in the other disciplines. Moreover, students will be supported to
visit and work at the partner institute with the other supervisors.
Students will also be supported to attend the American Geophysical Fall
Meeting and other relevant workshops and conferences.

We welcome students with backgrounds in physics, material science,
engineering, computer science, and geoscience. A master's or bachelor’s
degree in science, engineering, or related fields is required. Programming
skills in Python, C++, or MATLAB are preferred. Motivated applicants with
strong communication skills, especially experience in scientific writing
and presentation are encouraged. These positions are open to students from
all countries.

The position will remain *open until filled* and *begin either Spring or
Fall of 2022*. We invite interested students to contact Daniel Frost (
dafrost<at>berkeley.edu), Bruce Buffett (bbuffett<at>berkeley.edu), and Lowell
Miyagi (lowell.miyagi<at>utah.edu). We strongly encourage applications from
individuals with disabilities, women, minorities, non-traditional students,
and members of other underrepresented groups.

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