Superconductivity in action

Oxford part of new superconductivity training hub

Quantum materials
Condensed Matter Physics

The Department of Physics at the University of Oxford is delighted to be part of the brand new EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Superconductivity: Enabling Transformative Technologies. The CDT is led by the University of Bristol and will bring together graduate superconductivity training in the Universities of Bristol, Oxford and Cambridge across their Physics, Material Science, Engineering and Chemistry departments. The CDT has partnerships with several major companies which use superconducting technology. The training centre will form a nucleus for the UK superconductivity community offering training and networking opportunities to those outside of the CDT.

‘We are looking forward to welcoming the very best graduate students to advance this essential field,’ comments Professor Amalia Coldea from the Department of Physics at the University of Oxford. ‘Superconducting materials are key to so many of society’s greatest challenges: transitioning to net zero with clean and renewable energy; advancing healthcare diagnostics through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems; underpinning the quantum revolution.

‘We have a thriving superconductivity research community here in Oxford with world-leading expertise. Our quantum materials groups explore fundamental aspects of superconductivity via theoretical and complex experiments to understand how and why these materials conduct current without resistance while at the Oxford Centre for Applied Superconductivity, we partner with local industry to investigate future applications of superconducting materials.’

The CDT will welcome its first cohort of doctoral students in October 2025 and supervisors will be drawn from a pool of 37 academics from Bristol, Cambridge and Oxford who are all internationally recognised for research excellence and have a strong record of graduate student supervision. Students will be trained on cutting-edge original research projects, aligned to the research interests of the academic supervisors and industrial and international research facility partners.