Project background: The aim of this project is to investigate ultrafast dynamics in Mott insulators, in particular GaTa4Se8. A volatile drop in electrical resistivity can be triggered in these materials either following the application of an electric field for a few tens of microseconds or, crucially, after exposure to an ultrashort THz pulse. Job description: Our goal is to characterize the resulting low resistivity phase as well as the nature of the ultrafast transition leading to it, using a combination of ultrafast spectroscopy techniques in the THz, mid-infrared and x-ray frequency ranges. This project will be based in Prof. Steven Johnson’s Ultrafast Dynamics Group at ETH Zürich and conducted under Dr Elsa Abreu’s leadership. X-ray measurements will take place at large-scale facilities both in Switzerland and abroad. Full description and application on ETHZ Website: https://www.jobs.ethz.ch/job/view/6056?mw_source=jobs_ethz