项目介绍

2025年3月10日

Do you enjoy working in an interdisciplinary research setting on foundational questions in physics? The Institute of Physics and the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation of the University of Amsterdam are looking for an ambitious PhD candidate.

This is what you will do

The successful applicant will work under the supervision of Sebastian De Haro and Erik Verlinde and will have the opportunity to collaborate with Niels Martens (Utrecht University) and Jeroen van Dongen (University of Amsterdam). The position is integrated in the national consortium Emergence at All Scales (EAAS; see below) and within this context we invite interested candidates to apply for a 4-year PhD position in the foundations of physics.

You will investigate the philosophical and theoretical aspects of the emergence of time and laws of gravitation in the context of quantum cosmology, black holes, dark matter and dark energy. Your research will be on the recent uses of algebraic methods in quantum field theory, especially von Neumann algebras, for the notions of time and laws. You will investigate the interpretation and physical salience of the derivation of time in algebraic approaches to quantum gravity, and the possible observer-dependence and emergence of the laws of gravitation in cosmological scenarios like de Sitter spacetime. You will use tools from both philosophy and theoretical physics to address these questions, and their consequences for physics-based accounts of emergence. PhD candidates furthermore, are expected to contribute to the institute’s educational mission, e.g., by working as teaching assistants for courses in their area of expertise and by assisting with the supervision of student research projects. In addition, PhD candidates hired from the EAAS* project have responsibilities within the EAAS consortium.

What we ask of you

You are a highly motivated MSc student with a keen interest in the foundational aspects of quantum gravity and quantum cosmology. You are capable of working within a research environment combining physics and philosophy.

Your experience and profile:

• MSc in a relevant discipline, such as Theoretical Physics, Mathematics, and-or Philosophy;
• demonstrable experience in philosophy of physics;
• demonstrable experience with either algebraic quantum field theory, quantum gravity or string theory;
• an excellent academic record;
• professional command of English.

This is what we offer you

A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 18 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). The preferred starting date is 1 September 2025. This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.

The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between € 2,901 to € 3,707 (scale P).This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The UFO profile PhD is applicable. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable.