Ph.D. positions for research

Fully-funded Ph.D. positions are available in the Ferdowsi Research Laboratory within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Houston. Positions are available with start date as early as Spring 2022 and Fall 2022. Some of our active research areas are experimental and computational mechanics of Earth materials, rheology of Earth materials, granular mechanics, physics-based modeling and quantitative studies of Earth’s near-surface processes. Applications are welcomed from students with bachelor’s or master’s degree in Earth Science, Environmental Science, Geology, Geophysics, Physics, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or related fields. A strong background or a strong interest in granular physics, solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, and some experience in either of computer programming, high performance computing, discrete element method, molecular dynamics or atomistic simulations, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), experimental investigation for rheology of soft materials and complex fluids, soil mechanics, rock friction and deformation experiments, is a plus. The research projects will be designed in collaboration with the students and will be motivated by their interests and career goals, within the general research areas of the laboratory. There are also opportunities for collaboration with researchers and faculty at the National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping (NCALM), and that can connect modeling and laboratory-scale studies to the larger field-scale, geological-scale, and remote sensing observations. The interested candidates are encouraged to (i) apply directly to the Ph.D. programs in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Houston.