Applications are invited for a PhD studentship funded by the Loughborough University Graduate School to start in October 2015. The project will be based in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering and the Department of Materials.

Electrically conductive adhesives (ECAs) are widely used as a low temperature joining technology for the interconnection of electrical and electronic components in applications ranging from flat screen display panels to RFID tags and photovoltaic power generation. ECAs are usually based on metallic particle fillers that provide the electrical conductivity through particle-to-particle contacts and a surrounding polymer matrix that provides structural integrity and adhesion. Increasingly, there is a desire to use these materials in more demanding environments, such as where there are high levels of moisture and/or extremes of temperature, and this places demands on their long term mechanical integrity, adhesive bonding capabilities and electrical resistivity.

The aim of this project is to investigate the reliability and failure mechanisms of electrically conductive adhesives when exposed to high levels of moisture. This will be carried out in the context of a number of potential applications where it would be desirable to use ECAs as an alternative or enabling joining technology. Silver flake is used as the filler in many ECAs and the research will also consider how alternative fillers may be substituted in to the formulation and how this will affect the adhesive reliability, cost and environmental impacts.  

The studentship is for 3 years and is intended to start in October 2015. The studentship provides a tax free stipend of £13,863 per annum for the duration of the studentship plus tuition fees at the UK/EU rate.International (non EU) students may apply but will need to find the difference in fees between those for a ‘UK/EU’ and ‘international’ student themselves.

Students will normally need to hold, or expect to gain, at least a 2:1 degree (or equivalent) in one of the following or related areas: Materials, Chemistry, Mechanical or Manufacturing Engineering. A relevant Master’s degree in the above areas and/or experience in one or more of the following will be an advantage: adhesive formulation, surface engineering, structural or materials testing.

General information about the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, and the Department of Materials can be found at: http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/mechman/ andhttp://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/materials/.

For informal enquiries about the project, please contact Dr David Hutt, D.A.Hutt<στο>lboro.ac.uk.

To apply, please complete the online application using the following link:https://luis.lboro.ac.uk/web_apx/f?p=100:1.

The closing date for applications is 27 February 2015.

Interviews will take place in March.

Please quote the following reference when applying: GS15AACME/M5.