Our studentships
Our transdisciplinary PhD projects explore a variety of exciting, cutting-edge topics.
We are offering five fully funded PhD research scholarships targeting highly transdisciplinary topics.
These projects encompass:
- Advanced textiles
- Smart materials
- Flexible electronics and soft robotics
- Sensors
- Electronic skin
- Signal acquisition and analysis
- Machine learning
- Artificial Intelligence
Successful candidates will benefit from the state-of-the-art research facilities, world-class expertise and supervision, customised training programmes, networking, outreach and career development opportunities.
Our studentship topics
The application portal is open - and each programme commences in October 2025. We look forward to hearing from you.
Material and structural design for wearable sensing applications
Supervisors: Dr Ishara Dharmasena and Dr Hemaka Bandulasena
Schools: Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, and Chemical Engineering
This project investigates the use of advanced materials and sensors design related to wearable applications.
You will explore the use of textiles and other flexible / stretchable materials, their functionalisation, sensor fabrication and characterisation as well as theoretical simulation and modelling aspects.
Emerging flexible electronics for wearable applications
Supervisors: Dr Ishara Dharmasena, Dr Hemaka Bandulasena and Dr Chetna Prajapati
Schools: Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, and Design and Creative Arts
You will explore emerging flexible electronic technologies including triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG), electronic skin and soft robotics.
Studying the development of these flexible electronics, their characterisation and optimisation, you will focus on wearable and healthcare applications.
Power management and communication strategies for super-smart textiles
Supervisors: Dr Ishara Dharmasena, Professor Will Whittow and Dr Varuna De Silva
Schools: Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, and Loughborough University London
Super-smart textiles have the unique capability of acting as self-powered sensors and energy harvesters. Managing the energy that they produce is critical for their autonomous operation, but such strategies need to be compatible with textiles - combining flexibility and wearability.
You will develop optimum power management, storage and wireless communication techniques for super-smart textiles.
Data acquisition and neuromorphic machine learning for super-smart textiles
Supervisors: Dr Varuna De Silva, Dr Stuart McErlain-Naylor and Professor Will Whittow
Schools: Loughborough University London, Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, and Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering
You will develop the data acquisition, analysis and interpretation methods optimised for super-smart textiles sensors.
Using sensor fusion, edge computing, low-power data processing methods, neuromorphic machine learning and AI technologies, you will explore the development of new techniques.
User-centric application design for super-smart textiles
Supervisors: Dr Stuart McErlain-Naylor, Professor Andy Harland and Dr Chetna Prajapati
Schools: Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, and Design and Creative Arts
You will focus on the healthcare and sports application development related to super-smart textiles and other wearable electronic technologies.
For a selection of healthcare and sports applications, you will examine the user-centric design considerations, biomechanical aspects related to wearable sensing, and optimisation of sensors and wearable electronics.