This project area is suitable for 3-year PhD in physics. The project does not currently have funding attached, students must be able to fund the fees and their living costs by applying for a suitable scholarship, see https://www.kent.ac.uk/scholarships/postgraduate, or through some another source of funds. Current information on fees is available here.
A high-performance adaptive optics (AO) system requires a deformable mirror with a large number of elements and large stroke, as well as a sensitive wave-front sensor. Such elements are used in AO for astronomy, but they are very expensive. En-face orientation imaging is exactly what is required for combining OCT with AO for imaging the retina. We are aiming for an OCT orientation which is familiar to ophthalmologists using scanning laser ophthalmoscopy, achievable via en-face OCT. We predict that by incorporating AO elements, the transversal resolution of en-face OCT will become comparable to its depth resolution. Specific skills will be acquired in OCT, AO, and morphology and function of the retina.
There is no deadline for the project – applicants will be assessed on a rolling basis – although please note any separate deadlines for scholarships or funding. The candidates must be in place in September 2022. Potential applicants are encouraged to contact Prof Adrian Podoleanu for informal discussions before applying.