PhD Studentship: Tidal Disruptions of Stars by Supermassive Black Holes

When a star wanders too close to a supermassive black hole, it gets torn apart by extreme gravitational forces, leading to a powerful flash of light detectable billions of light years away. These phenomena, referred to as “tidal disruption events”, represent unique probes of supermassive black holes that lie otherwise undetectable in the centres of galaxies. While a few tens of such events have been observed so far, thousands of new detections will be made by the Rubin Observatory starting next year.

The main goal of this PhD project is to develop the theoretical understanding needed to optimally interpret the emission received from tidal disruption events at the dawn of this observational golden era. This work will involve pen-and-paper theory, writing code to solve equations, and running numerical simulations on supercomputers, in order to predict the evolution around the black hole of the gas stripped from the disrupted star and the resulting emission to be detected by telescopes. Depending on specific interest, the project can involve various branches of astrophysics, such as gas dynamics, magnetic fields, electromagnetic radiation, and general relativity.

This position is funded for 3.5 years through the ERC Starting Grant project “Unleash-TDEs” led by Clément Bonnerot. It is open to both UK and international students, covering all tuition fees, a monthly stipend, and travels to conferences. Additionally, the student will be provided with a laptop and given access to the university’s supercomputer BlueBEAR to carry out their work.

The selected student will be part of the Astrophysics and Space Research group located at the heart of the beautiful campus of the University of Birmingham, providing them with a vibrant and diverse research environment with expertise in areas such as theoretical and observational extragalactic astrophysics and gravitational-wave astronomy (for a full list of group members, see: https://www.sr.bham.ac.uk/whoswho.php). The successful candidate will join a supportive and friendly cohort of 15 PhD students, and be invited to a range of social events organized throughout the program.

The application deadline is on 19th January 2025. Shortlisted candidates will then be invited for an interview to finalize the selection. The successful applicant would normally start their PhD in September 2025, but the date can be negotiated if needed.

If you require any additional information, do not hesitate to contact Clément Bonnerot by email (c.a.bonnerot@bham.ac.uk).

More details on postgraduate research at the University of Birmingham and entrance requirements can also be found at https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/research and http://www.sr.bham.ac.uk/phd/index.php.

To apply for this position, follow this link: https://sits.bham.ac.uk/lpages/EPS005.htm, then click on “Apply Now” in front of the relevant option (Program “PhD in Department of Physics and Astronomy” and Year “2025/2026”). As part of your application, you will need to provide: an academic transcript, a CV, a personal statement highlighting your motivation for pursuing this PhD project and any relevant experience, and up to two letters of recommendation (to be uploaded by the application deadline). Make sure that you include “Clément Bonnerot” as one of your proposed supervisors to be considered for this project.

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