PhD and MScR positions at the IPPP
Supervisors and projects for STFC-funded particle theory PhD positions within the IPPP beginning in 2027 are listed below. Information on how to apply for these positions can be found here. These studentships are open to both home and international students, and provide tuition fees and a standard tax-free stipend for a duration of 3.5 years. Candidates are strongly encouraged to submit their application by 15 December for full consideration for STFC and other studentships.
Separate from the PhD programme, the IPPP also welcomes applications for the Masters by Research (MScR) degree. These positions are self-funded, and projects can be tailored to a student’s interests in collaboration with prospective supervisors, who should be contacted before applying. Sample MScR projects are listed at the bottom of this page, but applicants are encouraged to reach out to any IPPP staff member with project proposals or general expressions of interest. Information on how to apply can be found here.
Note that in addition to the IPPP, a separate particle theory group exists within the mathematics department. Candidates are welcome to submit applications to both groups, more details on positions in the mathematics department are available here.
PhD Projects beginning 2027
Searching for New Physics Phenomena beyond and within the Standard Model
In the last decades, the Standard Model of particle physics evolved to the most precise theory of fundamental interactions and the elementary constituents of matter. Despite its great success, there remain open questions: the Standard Model cannot account for the dark matter content of the universe, it does not explain why the Higgs boson mass is so much smaller than the Planck mass or why QCD does not break CP-symmetry. It also does not explain the observed matter-antimatter asymmetry of the universe, which must have been present shortly after the Big Bang, and this remains one of the major outstanding questions in modern physics.
And even within the Standard Model itself, there exist fascinating quantum and non-perturbative phenomena that are predicted by Quantum Field Theory, but have never been observed in any particle physics experiments. These are related to semiclassical field configurations such as instantons which describe quantum tunnelling effects, monopoles, skyrmions and other soliton-like configurations.
This project will develop theoretical and phenomenological approaches to search for fundamental new physics phenomena in the Standard Model itself and in Beyond-the-Standard-Model formulations to address these exciting issues.
Dark Matter and Early Universe Physics
The nature of dark matter and the physics of the early Universe remain among the most profound mysteries in fundamental physics. This PhD project will explore how upcoming observations can provide new insights into both, using the Universe itself as a laboratory for physics beyond the Standard Model. From the formation and evolution of the earliest stars to gravitational waves from merging compact objects and the gravitational lensing of distant supernovae, a wealth of astronomical phenomena may carry signatures of dark matter and the processes that shaped the young Universe. By combining theoretical modelling, numerical simulations, and cutting-edge observations, the project will develop novel ways to uncover these signatures and connect them to fundamental physics. The ultimate goal is to transform astrophysical observations into powerful probes of the invisible Universe, shedding light on the nature of dark matter and the Universe’s first second.
Heavy Quark Decays
Predictions for the decays of heavy quarks, in particular bottom and charm quarks, can be used to test the Standard Model and constrain effects of physics beyond it.
In the last decade, flavour physics has provided tantalising hints toward such “Beyond the Standard Model” physics. A central difficulty in making these predictions is controlling the effects of the strong interaction, which requires methods from quantum chromodynamics such as effective field theories, dispersive bounds, and light-cone sum rules.
The project will combine analytical work with numerical analysis of measurements from experiments such as LHCb and Belle II. Depending on the candidate’s interests, the emphasis can lean toward formal calculations, phenomenological fits, or statistical methods for interpreting data.
The candidate will contribute to the open-source software EOS, which is developed by an international collaboration of doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers. This gives early experience with collaborative software development and with tools used across the field.
Quantum Computing for Many-Body Systems
The purpose of this project is to advance quantum computing and tensor network methods in quantum many-body systems, quantum field theory, and possible even holography. Quantum field theories such as that of the Standard Model of particle physics have Hilbert spaces whose dimension grows exponentially with the number of degrees of freedom. This makes many direct calculation impossible except in small or weakly coupled systems. Recently there has been great excitement in the use of quantum computing and tensor network methods to get around these obstacles and treat large nonperturbative processes, by so-called Hamiltonian simulation — basically brute-force evolve the whole system like a giant quantum wavefunction. So far vacuum decay has been modelled using various types of quantum computer in this fashion, while scattering of scalars and fermions has been treated on tensor network simulations of photonic quantum computers. Combined, it is hoped that these advances could lead to progress in our understanding of fundamental processes that are difficult to model by other methods, for example bubble nucleation and growth in the early universe, alongside many other phenomena. The project would aim to advance in this area using the available methods and whatever hardware becomes available.
Explorations with Effective Field Theory
Precision measurements at the LHC and future colliders offer exciting opportunities to discover new physics, even if new particles are too heavy to be produced directly. Making the most of these measurements requires increasingly sophisticated theoretical predictions, combining advances in quantum field theory with detailed phenomenological studies.
This project will explore applications of two powerful theoretical frameworks: the Standard Model Effective Field Theory (SMEFT) and Soft-Collinear Effective Theory (SCET). Possible directions include using SMEFT to search for subtle effects of new physics in Higgs, top-quark and electroweak processes, or using SCET to understand the dynamics of soft and collinear radiation in QCD, investigate factorization properties of scattering processes, and develop methods for resumming large logarithmic corrections to all orders in perturbation theory.
The project will involve developing and applying modern theoretical techniques, with the precise direction determined by the student’s interests and new developments in the field.
MScR Projects
Predictions for Collider Processes at High Energy
Some of these searches will relate to regions of phase space where the calculated perturbative coefficients of the theory predictions have systematically large contributions. These corrrections need to considered to all orders to ensure a stable prediction. A stable prediction is of course necessary to decide whether any possible deviation is because of fundamentally new physics, or because of a lack of understanding of known physics.
The project will further develop the High Energy Jets framework for precise predictions taking into account the systematic high energy corrections. Current projects involve both the analytic calculation of logarithmic corrections, and the combination of such logarithmic corrections with the standard approaches of fixed-order calculations and a parton shower, in order to get the best possible predictions. The project will therefore interface with many of the available tools and calculations used in particle physics phenomenology while providing novel new insight.
Supervisor: Jeppe Andersen
Heavy flavours in SHERPA
This project is concerned with the analysis of weak and/or rare decays of heavy flavours, which provide unique opportunities to either measure fundamental parameters of the Standard Model such as elements of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix or to constrain new physics beyond the Standard Model. We will simulate some of these decays and compare the results of the simulation with recent data from LHC and BELLE. Where necessary, the project will then improve the theoretical description of these decays, for example through the inclusion of QED higher-order corrections.
Supervisor: Frank Krauss
Precision studies at a future lepton collider
In this project we will investigate precision simulations, with SHERPA,
for one of the possible future lepton colliders: FCC_ee, CEPC, both
operating at about 250 GeV centre-of-mass energy, or a muon collider,
operating in the multi-TeV range. We will study the effect of QCD and,
possibly, electroweak corrections to precision observables in
ZH-associated production or in the production of pairs of gauge bosons,
ZZ and WW. Alternatively we will quantify the effect of non-pertubative
uncertainities and in how far they counteract ongoing efforts to
increase the theoretical accuracy of predictions.
Supervisor: Frank Krauss
Preparing for the HL-LHC
In this project we will investigate and determine limits for observables
at large energy scales, relevant for the high-luminosity phase of the
LHC. We will rely on the SHERPA simulation framework and its ability to
model proton-proton collisions at high accuracy to provide projections
for the kinematic reach of observables relevant for studies of
electroweak symmetry breaking and the Higgs boson.
Supervisor: Frank Krauss
Low-energy QED
In this project we will extend the SHERPA simulation framework to model
the production of few-hadron systems in electron-position annihilations,
through QED interactions, and the decay of some of the hadrons. These
studies underpin the experimental programme of facilities such as BES
and BELLE II.
Supervisor: Frank Krauss
Investigating co-production of PBHs and UCMHs
This project will calculate electromagnetic radiative corrections to selected hadron decays, focusing on virtual-photon effects, real-photon emission and infrared-finite observables. It will investigate how hadronic structure and experimental photon-selection criteria affect theoretical predictions.
The aim is to improve theoretical control of hadron-decay observables and strengthen tests of the Standard Model. Applications include precision determinations of CKM matrix elements and tests of lepton-flavour universality in meson decays, where radiative effects introduce lepton-flavour universality-breaking effects that can impact measured decay rates and introduce significant uncertainties.
Supervisor: Djuna Croon
Cosmic strings: probing fundamental physics with gravitational waves
Supervisor: Jessica Turner
Precision QED Corrections to Hadron Decays
This project will calculate electromagnetic radiative corrections to selected hadron decays, focusing on virtual-photon effects, real-photon emission and infrared-finite observables. It will investigate how hadronic structure and experimental photon-selection criteria affect theoretical predictions.
The aim is to improve theoretical control of hadron-decay observables and strengthen tests of the Standard Model. Applications include precision determinations of CKM matrix elements and tests of lepton-flavour universality in meson decays, where radiative effects introduce lepton-flavour universality-breaking effects that can impact measured decay rates and introduce significant uncertainties.
Supervisor: Marek Schoenherr
Standard Model and Beyond at Future Lepton Colliders
This project will investigate Standard Model (SM) predictions and sensitivity to physics beyond the Standard Model (BSM) at future lepton colliders. It will explore precision observables and differential distributions in selected Higgs, electroweak or fermion-production processes, assessing their sensitivity to deviations from SM predictions. Particular emphasis will be placed on quantifying how improved theoretical precision in SM predictions affects the sensitivity to BSM physics and the interpretation of future measurements.
The aim is to quantify the discovery potential of future lepton colliders and strengthen tests of the SM. Applications include constraining effective field theory operators, probing new interactions and identifying indirect signatures of heavy new particles at facilities such as FCC-ee, CEPC and a possible future muon collider. The project will use the Monte-Carlo event generator Sherpa as a phenomenological simulation tool, estimate expected sensitivities and assess the complementarity of measurements at different centre-of-mass energies.
Supervisor: Marek Schoenherr