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I’m a PhD research student in Queen’s University ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓƵ School of Psychology, based in the Kids in Context Lab and supervised by Drs. Dautel, Blaylock, and Baysu. My research examines diversity and inclusion in Northern Ireland’s integrated and super-diverse primary schools, with a focus on how opportunity and intentionality intersect to shape social outcomes. In collaboration with the Council for Integrated Education (NICIE), my findings aim to inform and refine their statement of principles.

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Develop and optimise an assay for detecting kinase and substrate activity. 

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My project looks at how cells respond to radiation delivered at extremely high dose rates using ultrashort electron pulses. Conventional radiotherapy damages healthy tissue, and although FLASH radiotherapy can reduce this, the underlying mechanisms are still not well understood. By using picosecond and femtosecond electron beams from laser–plasma accelerators, I’m studying how dose rate and pulse duration affect cell survival and DNA damage, including in 3D tumour spheroids. The goal is to understand the biology behind these effects and help inform future radiotherapy techniques.

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With an ever-increasing ageing population and growing strain on palliative and end-of-life care services, understanding death, dying and bereavement is crucial. In response to these demographic trends and structural challenges, various public health approaches to palliative care have been devised across the island of Ireland. However, with the lack of an accepted outcome measure, their effectiveness is largely uncertain. This PhD adapted a tool (Death Literacy Index, DLI) to measure death literacy across the island of Ireland. Using cognitive interviews with a think-aloud methodology, the Death Literacy Index-Island of Ireland (DLI-IRE) was developed. The DLI-IRE was administered through a population survey and psychometrically validated. Population-level benchmarks were calculated, and predictors of death literacy were explored. An online workshop with death literacy experts across the island produced a Theory of Change model and five priority recommendations for enhancing death literacy in communities across the island of Ireland. This PhD research provides the island of Ireland with its first culturally validated tool to assess death literacy and to evaluate and improve the provision and quality of palliative and end of life care services.

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The project aims to develop lightweight computer vision models for real-time deployment in water analysis systems. Passively detect and quantify particles of known size and d spherical in shape in an inline flow system. Extend and enhance the previously developed method to account for objects of varying size and shape. Refine the developed solutions for deployment in in-line water sampling systems, ensuring real-time capabilities and robustness in diverse conditions.

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We are developing a system to automatically estimate production cost and times based on product data created during the design phase of product development. The benefit of this will be to allow companies to more accurately forecast production costs, bottlenecks, and resource requirements whilst the product is still in development, reducing the incurred cost compared to when changes are made in further stages of product development.

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My research investigates the capacity of UK planning systems in preventing agricultural diffuse pollution, using Northern Ireland as a case study. Through stakeholder engagement and targeted case studies I am researching the potential for strengthening pollution prevention through planning measures and to identify key actions to be taken forward in planning reform to mitigate agricultural pollution.

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My project investigates the response of biological cell samples to laser-driven, ultra-short electron sources. This type of radiation is capable of delivering clinically relevant doses on sub-picosecond timescales, opening a novel approach to radiation research. I combine experimental studies with corresponding simulations using TOPAS (a Geant4-based Monte Carlo toolkit) to interpret and correlate biological outcomes. I collaborate with my external supervisor at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), where we are jointly developing highly precise dosimetric techniques tailored to this novel radiation source.

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The characteristics of functional liquid materials, from electrolytes in batteries, through solutions of peptides and pharmaceutical formulations, to lubricants under shear, depend on the short-range interactions between neighbouring molecules and ions. These give rise to the characteristic local structure of liquids, and shape their properties. The liquid structure is more challenging to measure than solid, crystalline materials, but can be uniquely probed by combining neutron diffraction with isotopic substitution, most significantly using H/D-substitution to take advantage of the differential scattering cross-sections between of the isotopes. The STFC ISIS Neutron and Muon Source at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (Oxfordshire, UK) is the world leading facility for neutron scattering studies, spearheading the study of Disordered Materials: liquids and glasses. Recent upgrades to hardware and software provisions make ISIS the perfect place to study complex liquids. Currently, the greatest challenge in the study complex functional liquids is the limited supply of isotopically-substituted materials.

Contact Suraj here.

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The overall objectives of this research are to contribute to the advancement and implementation of plasma- based accelerators with the aim of generating high-quality positron and x-ray sources for EuPRAXIA. This plasma-based accelerator aims to include the generation of coherent and bright x-ray betatron radiation and the generation of ultra-short (∼fs) and ultra-relativistic (∼ 500 MeV) positron beams. This project will contribute to ongoing efforts, in collaboration with Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati (LNF), to develop and test beamlines and user end-stations for betatron x-rays and high-energy positron beams. One motivation for developing these positron sources is their application in Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS). This is a material defect characterisation technique which causes no damage to the material.

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Develop statistical methods that improve biological inference from data obtained by single molecule localisation microscopy (SMLM). Data obtained using SMLM is prone to over-/ underlabelling, spurious detections, duplicate localisations of the same molecule, and structural heterogeneity. My project aims to use techniques from Bayesian statistics to tackle these difficulties

Contact Ryan here.

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Developing compact ‘all-optical’ ion accelerators using high power lasers has attracted significant interest internationally due to their broad applicative potential in science, industry and healthcare. The CLF is currently building the Extreme Photonics Applications Centre (EPAC), which is aimed to provide a step-change in capability for laser-driven accelerator research in the UK as this facility will house a state-of-the-art 10 Hz Petawatt laser system. My research aims to exploit the high repetition rate capability of the EPAC laser system in developing a robust and reliable source of laser-driven ions. I am working on designing the EPAC ion beamline for potential radiobiology investigations, as well as, developing ion diagnostics capable of operation at a high repetition rate, which are crucial for the commissioning of the high-intensity target area in EPAC. My research involves a strong collaboration between the CLF and QUB and contributes towards keeping the UK at the forefront of the development of high repetition-rate novel laser-plasma accelerators.

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This CAST studentship is carried out in collaboration with NI based company STATSports. STATSports are market leaders in GPS trackers for sports and provide performance analysis systems for elite sports teams and individual athletes. Throughout this project multiple avenues of research will be explored to contribute to the field of applied sports science as well as to the commercial pursuits of STATSports. These projects are primarily in the areas of; -In-situ fatigue analysis. -Power-force-velocity profiling. -Data analysis and reporting.

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The focus of this project is to investigate the dynamics occurring in the immediate aftermath of ionising radiation interactions with matter. This involves the use of high-powered lasers to explore the effects of this radiation in our materials of interest over ultrashort time frames. Understanding ultrafast dynamics and material response to ionising radiation is vitally important for many applications from the design of technology exposed to radiation to medical physics.

Contact Ciara here.

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My work aims to leverage recent developments in Quantum Reservoir Computing and Quantum Extreme Learning Machines (QELMs) to facilitate the estimation of properties of interest in quantum computers that are otherwise extremely time and resource-intensive to analyse. This would provide an experimentally simple method for process such as quantum process verification, entanglement estimation and noise characterisation. Recent developments indicate fundamental links between the subject of QELMs and Quantum State Tomography, providing a pathway for full state reconstruction without the requirement for complex measurement schemes.

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Those living in rural communities face significant and distinct health inequalities which are heightened at the end of life. My research focuses on developing a public health approach to improve end-of-life care in rural and remote communities across the Island of Ireland. This project aims to build a theoretical understanding of death literacy within these communities, which is the knowledge and skills people need in order to gain access to, understand, and make informed decisions about end of life and death care options. The research will also explore the experiences of those who provide unpaid end-of-life care in rural areas, to understand how these caring experiences shape death literacy and build social capital. Utilising this understanding and by collaborating with a rural community, a compassionate community initiative will be co-deigned which will improve local capacity around death dying and bereavement, reducing regional inequalities in end-of-life care.

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Despite the importance of reading proficiency to academic success, around 25% of children in England fail to reach government expected reading levels by the end of primary school (DfE, 2024). Similar numbers are estimated for NI, with average reading proficiency only slightly higher than England in the most recent IEA study (PIRLS, 2021). Many interventions have been developed to combat these delays in reading attainment. Reading To Dogs (RTD) is an intervention for reading improvement which has received a lot of research attention of late (41 research articles and 3 systematic reviews to-date; see Steel 2024). Despite the perceived benefit of RTD for children’s reading among over 250 UK primary school teachers who have participated in RTD interventions (Steel et al., 2021), little is understood about how/why RTD works. Understanding the mechanisms mediating the effectiveness of this intervention would allow us to: (a) refine it, making it more effective; (b) adapt it for use with additional populations, e.g. younger children and those with learning difficulties; (c) ensure it is cost effective, including only the most essential components.

Contact John via email here.

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In this PhD project we aim to demonstrate a new type of Porous Liquid (PL), specifically one which does not rely on the presence of a porogen, but in which pores exist between the molecules of a pure liquid phase. Demonstrating such permanent extrinsic porosity of molecular dimension in a liquid would be of significant fundamental importance. In addition to new materials, advances are needed in techniques to study such materials under appropriate conditions. Neutron scattering can provide key information on critical structural aspects of the liquid phase; however, current cell designs do not allow for i. fast equilibration with gases, ii. studying small amounts, or iii. close control and measurement of temperature. We will fulfil the need for this capability through the construction of a new cell (The Fast cell).

Contact Philip via email here.

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The project examines how sustainable business models can accelerate the integration of innovative electrochemical energy conversion technologies within electric bus production. It synthesises leading sustainability frameworks to develop a novel, sector-specific business model that advances environmental, social, and economic value creation while addressing challenges related to battery sustainability, manufacturing costs, and end-of-life management. Empirical validation draws on industry case studies and engagement with stakeholders across the full life cycle of bus manufacturing, demonstrating how strategic business innovation can enable scalable, low-carbon urban transport and strengthen the long-term viability of electric mobility systems.

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My research focuses on using high energy laser beams to generate beams of high energy ions. Beams accelerated through laser-based techniques have unique properties, particularly in terms of their ultrashort temporal profile, which are very distinctive and different from the characteristics of beams obtained from conventional accelerators. Laser-accelerated protons can be used in advanced radiography techniques for investigating and characterizing the highly transient, large amplitude electric and magnetic fields appearing in dense, hot plasmas, or to generate, by irradiation of suitable samples, transient states of matter in between plasmas and solids (warm dense matter) of interest to astrophysical objects (planetary cores) as well as to fusion plasmas.

Contact Noel via email here.

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This PhD project focuses on the development of metal‑free catalytic systems based on boron-containing frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) that are incorporated into ionic liquid systems. Synchrotron-based X-ray techniques are employed to probe the electronic structure of these boron compounds allowing the development of a novel method of quantifying Lewis acidity. Neutron scattering is used to elucidate the liquid structure of these FLP-IL systems and to investigate the mechanism of hydrogen activation. Overall, the project aims to enable and integrate capabilities for studying the chemistry of light elements, with a particular emphasis on boron.

Contact Kerri here.

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Develop a causality-linked mechanistic understanding of changes in lithium-ion batteries when exposured to mechanical vibration.

Contact Jonathan here.

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Characterisation and extraction of valuable materials from underutilised distillery waste.

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This project aims to accurately forecast behind the meter generation from PV, EV, and battery systems in Northern Ireland.

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Synthesis of a novel bio-based polymer to be used as a sustainable alternative in medical packaging. The material will need to be recyclable and suitable for thermal processing on existing manufacturing lines.

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This project aims at using high power lasers with ultrashort pulse durations to investigate how dielectric materials respond to such an intense interaction and the phenomenon that occur when these targets are hit. One such phenomenon is high harmonic generation (HHG) from relativistic plasma surfaces. These high order harmonics are a powerful source of extreme ultraviolet (XUV) and attosecond duration radiation that can be used to probe ultrafast science and have the potential to provide a route to unlocking higher light intensities. Thanks to my collaborators at the Helmholtz Institute in Jena, Germany, we will be using the JETi 200 high power laser to generate these high order harmonics and improve our understanding of laser-plasma interactions.

Contact Jordan here.

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