Masters Top-up Scholarship in Computational Materials Chemistry/Physics

Masters Top-up Scholarship in Computational Materials Chemistry/Physics

This is a joint project between RMIT, CSIRO and AIST Japan, that includes a top-up scholarship of $10,000 per annum funded by the CSIRO. The successful candidate will use a computational approach to develop piezoelectric materials for advanced sensors.

Piezoelectric materials play a pivotal role in the practical development of advanced sensors which rely on surface acoustic waves as the foundation of their sensing mechanism. An understanding of the piezoelectric response and was to further enhance it is required for these sensors to be used in a wider variety of applications. This project will explore the structural changes in nitride materials that lead to enhanced piezoelectric behaviour using density functional theory calculations and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. The project is a collaboration with Dr Michael Breedon at CSIRO and will involve working on the RMIT city campus and the CSIRO Clayton site. Promising formulations of the materials examined computationally will be experimentally assessed by collaborators at AIST Japan.

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$10,000 per year for 2 years

Open now

30/06/2026

1 (one).

Eligible candidates must meet the requirements for an RTP place at RMIT and enrol by December 2025. 

Students must:

  • be enrolled at an Australian university or hold an appropriate visa to study in Australia (if international); 
  • hold a primary scholarship; for example, a Research Training Program (RTP) scholarship or other primary scholarship of similar value; 
  • not be in receipt of any other Top-Up scholarship; 
  • be available to commence prior to 30 June 2026.

Interested candidates must check they meet the eligibility criteria to apply for a Masters at RMIT: How to apply - RMIT University . If they meet the eligibility criteria, candidates should contact the primary supervisor, Professor Michelle Spencer (michelle.spencer@rmit.edu.au), specifically mentioning this scholarship, to express their interest and apply through the RMIT application process.

Candidates with prior experience in DFT and AIMD simulations is required.The candidate is expected to work across RMIT and CSIRO (Clayton).Applicants who meet the eligibility criteria and must enroll by December 2025.

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Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.

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