How rusty can a memory be? Understanding the impact of oxidation on palaeomagnetic recorders

Description

Background:

Earth’s magnetic field stretches back to the very early formation of our planet. The structure and how it changes with time has had a significant effect on our atmosphere and the evolution of life on Earth. Understanding how Earth’s field changes give us valuable insight into the formation of the geodynamo, from which it arises, and the processes that drive it.

Over billions of years, Earth’s field is recorded and locked away in tiny magnetic grains within rocks. These small particles are subjected to several processes that seek to destroy the precious information within, however these ancient recordings can survive and be recovered in the laboratory by careful heating. Oxidation is the least understood of the processes that corrupt ancient recordings and it is the aim of this project to develop a theoretical model of how chemical alteration affects the magnetic signals held in natural recorders.

Project aims and methods:

This exciting project will make use of an existing micromagnetics package to model thermal behaviour of small magnetic particles as a function of oxidation, geometry, and oxidation boundary stress. Very little is known about this mechanism, but it’s ubiquitous in laboratory observations and is a frequently cited source of measurement error. The project will make use of large high performance computing clusters, big-data analysis, and machine learning techniques to build a state-of-the-art simulation of oxidised magnetic minerals.

Impact knowledge and skills:

You will become a member of the postgraduate research community in Earth, Ocean & Ecological Sciences at the University of Liverpool and be an integral part of the Geomagnetism group, which hosts world-class facilities and expertise. You will also collaborate with palaeomagnetists – who use geological materials, and microscopists – who visualise grain morphologies, giving you a broad experience of Earth science magnetism. As part of the project, you will also have the opportunity to present your work at internationally recognised conferences.

Further information and eligibility:

Numeracy/computing skills are essential as is experience in programming with Python. It would be advantageous to have some experience with data analysis, databases, and machine learning – but this is not essential.

Start Date: 1st October 2023

Further Details:

This PhD project is funded by The Faculty of Science & Engineering at The University of Liverpool and will start on 1st October 2023.

Successful candidates who meet the University of Liverpool eligibility criteria will be awarded a Faculty of Science & Engineering studentship for 3.5 years, covering UK tuition fees and an annual tax-free stipend (e.g. £17,688 p.a. for 2022-23).

Faculty of Science & Engineering students benefit from bespoke graduate training and £5,000 for training, travel and conferences.

The Faculty of Science & Engineering is committed to equality, diversity, widening participation and inclusion. Academic qualifications are considered alongside non-academic experience. Our recruitment process considers potential with the same weighting as past experience. Students must complete a personal statement profoma and ensure this is included in their online application.

How to Apply:

All applicants must complete the personal statement proforma. This is instead of a normal personal/supporting statement/cover letter. The proforma is designed to standardise this part of the application to minimise the difference between those who are given support and those who are not. The proforma can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/ym2ycne4. More information on the application process can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/mwn5952t. When applying online, students should ensure they include the department name in the ‘Programme Applied For’ section of the online form, as well as the Faculty of Science & Engineering as the ‘studentship type’ in the finance section.

Application Web Address: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-research/how-to-apply/