Global Doctoral scholarship - St Andrews and Bonn - Chemistry

Application period opens
Wednesday 1 January 2025
Application period closes
Friday 25 April 2025
Entry
2025

The University of St Andrews and the University of Bonn are pleased to offer a scholarship funded by both institutions, to support an exceptional student undertaking doctoral research in the following project: Programming autonomous chemical systems in time and space – towards materials with lifelike properties

Project

The survival of living organisms relies on the ability to make the right material at the right time in the right place. Exquisite control mechanisms have evolved to trigger biochemical events only when and where they are needed. These complex networks allow biological systems to rapidly adapt in response to specific internal and external stimuli with spatial and temporal precision.

Artificial chemical systems that can autonomously create materials with life-like properties are essentially unknown. Although chemistry has historically shunned the use of mixtures of compounds, viewing them as an unwanted problem that must be eliminated, controlling and directing mixtures of molecular and nanoscale chemical entities is critical to creating systems displaying the behaviours characteristic of biology.

The new field of systems chemistry embraces mixtures. In the systems chemistry approach, each compound present in a mixture is programmed to interact and react with one or more partners within the ensemble. With careful design of these pairwise interactions, a collection of artificial chemical entities can express complex dynamic behaviours. By using relatively simple artificial components that can be studied experimentally, systems chemists investigate how complex reaction networks give rise to emergent behaviours and seek to create new smart materials with life-like properties.

This project will bring together two labs from St Andrews and two labs from Bonn. Our goal is to create reaction networks that exhibit two fundamental life-like behaviours – self-replication and nanoscale assembly – and use light to instruct these networks. By controlling when and where replication and assembly processes occur, we ultimately aim to create a new type of animate material with properties that depend on structure across multiple length-scales.

Project objectives:

  1. Create optimised photoswitchable artificial molecular replicators that can be remotely actuated to turn replication activity on and off.
  2. Integrate photoswitchable molecular replicators within a pool of (molecular-sized) building blocks to create a chemical reaction network that generates specific dynamic materials at defined times and places according to photonic and chemical instructions.
  3. Install photoswitchable replicators on the surface of metallosupramolecular cages and gold nanoparticles, thereby creating nanoscale building blocks that can be instructed to assemble with spatiotemporal control.
  4. Demonstrate that the approach is modular, thus establishing a new general category of autonomously assembling materials that integrate the instructible behaviour of our molecular technologies (photoswitches and replicators) with the unique physical properties of solution-processible nanomaterials.

We are looking for a suitable candidate to take on this challenge and take the lead in this bilateral collaboration.

During the course of their doctoral training within this multidisciplinary project, the successful candidate will:

  • Learn to design, synthesise and characterise molecules
  • Learn how to use noncovalent interactions and covalent reactivity to create self-replicating and self-assembling molecular and nanoscale systems
  • Learn how to characterise structure and dynamic chemical processes in multi-lengthscale systems
  • Develop in-depth knowledge of cutting-edge research spanning the fields of supramolecular chemistry, nanochemistry and systems chemistry
  • Learn to work in an international and collaborative setup
  • Receive close mentorship with one-to-one supervision
  • Develop a broad range of expertise in chemical design, synthesis, and analytical techniques as well as international teamwork and collaborative work, which will be invaluable for the job market post PhD

The project will be managed jointly between the School of Chemistry at St Andrews and the Institute for Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry at Bonn. The student will be supervised by Dr Euan Kay and Professor Douglas Philp in St Andrews and Dr Larissa von Krbek and Professor Arne Lützen in Bonn.

Informal enquiries regarding this scholarship and the associated doctoral training can be addressed to any of the co-supervisors:

Value of award (per year)

The funding comprises a scholarship equivalent of a full-fees award and stipend for a period of up to 3.5 years. It is expected that the student will spend half of the scholarship term at the University of St Andrews and half at the University of Bonn:

  • For the period spent at the University of St Andrews, the scholarship will comprise a full fees award and a stipend paid at the current UK Research Council rate (£19,237 each year in 2024-2025).
  • For the period spent at the University of Bonn, the scholarship will comprise a monthly maintenance grant of €1,500. The University of Bonn does not charge any tuition fees, but students must pay a so-called social contribution once per semester (currently €315 per semester).

Unless otherwise specified, the scholarships do not cover:

  • Any continuation, extension or resubmission period or fees
  • A research training grant or another equivalent award for research expenses
  • Support for travel, immigration, health insurance and related charges between the partner institutions

Duration of award

Up to 3.5 years. The student will be expected to spend approximately half of the award term at the University of St Andrews and half at the University of Bonn. The successful candidate will be expected to have completed the doctorate degree by the end of the award term. The award term excludes the continuation period and any extension periods.

Application restrictions

Study level

Available to students studying at:

Postgraduate

Domicile for fee status

No restrictions

Schools

Available to students in the following Schools and Departments:

Chemistry

Application assessment

Academic merit

Available to

Prospective students

Mode of study

Full time

Geographical criteria

No restrictions

Additional criteria

Applicants must not already hold a doctoral degree or be matriculated for a doctoral degree at either the University of St Andrews or the University of Bonn, or another institution.

Students will enrol at both institutions from the outset, so the admission and scholarship criteria of both universities must be met.

It is expected that the successful student will begin the programme of study at Bonn to initiate the research and move to St Andrews at a later date: full details will be agreed with the supervisory team and the respective institutions. Overall, the programme of study will include 50% at each institution. The student may start their degree at any point in the academic year 2025-2026 prior to a final entry date of 27 May 2026, subject to agreement with the supervisory team.

For St Andrews, you will join the School of Chemistry. Please refer to the details on how to apply and entry requirements.

In Bonn, you will be part of the Kekulé Institute for Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry. Please refer to information on your route to a doctoral degree.

In Bonn, you will also be encouraged to become a member of the Bonn International Graduate School of Chemistry (BIGS Chemistry).

How to apply

Applications should be made by email to the co-supervisors at St Andrews and Bonn.

Your application should include the following documents:

  • Your CV that includes information about your academic training and any previous research experiences. Please indicate your most significant previous research experience, explaining the technical training you received, the field of study, and its duration.
  • A statement of no more than 500 words describing your suitability as a candidate for this project and for the Global Doctoral Scholarship. This statement should cover what attracts you to the scientific objectives of the project and your motivation for working in the two-site, four-group setup offered by this scholarship.
  • Transcripts of your most relevant or recent degrees.

Send your application by email to both Dr Euan Kay at ek28@st-andrews.ac.uk and Professor Dr Arne Lützen at arne.luetzen@uni-bonn.de.

Please indicate in your application that you wish to be considered for this scholarship, the Global Doctoral Scholarship von Krbek-Lützen-Kay-Philp.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to interview for the scholarship with the co-supervisors. This interview will take place online.

Following a successful application for the scholarship, candidates may be invited to submit an application to both universities for admission into the programme and award of the scholarship.

Please read the terms and conditions of scholarships for St Andrews.

Please contact us should you have any questions regarding the scholarship at pgscholarships@st-andrews.ac.uk.

Terms and conditions

Please read the University of St Andrews scholarships terms and conditions. Please be aware that partner institution programme and scholarship terms and conditions will also apply.

Doctoral research at St Andrews

As a doctoral student at the University of St Andrews you will be part of a growing, vibrant and intellectually stimulating postgraduate community. St Andrews is one of the leading research-intensive universities in the world and offers a postgraduate experience of remarkable richness.

St Leonard’s Postgraduate College is at the heart of the postgraduate community of St Andrews. The College supports all postgraduates and aims to provide opportunities for postgraduates to come together, socially and intellectually, and make new connections.

St Leonard’s works closely with the Postgraduate Society which is one of the most active societies within the Students’ Association. All doctoral students are automatically welcomed into the Postgraduate Society when they join the University.

In addition to the research training that doctoral students complete in their home School, doctoral students at St Andrews have access to GRADskills, a free, comprehensive training programme to support students' academic, professional and personal development.

Doctoral research at the University of Bonn

As a doctoral student at the University of Bonn you will be part of a vibrant and intellectually stimulating academic community. The University of Bonn is one of the leading research-intensive universities in the world. It is one of only 11 German Universities of Excellence and the only German university with six Clusters of Excellence.

In addition to the research training that doctoral students complete in their home Department, doctoral students at the University of Bonn have access to the Bonn Graduate Center, which is the central service department for doctoral candidates. It offers guidance on training and funding opportunities and offers a free and comprehensive training programme to support students' academic, professional and personal development.

When will I know the outcome?

During May 2025. Awards are subject to final signatures of contracts between the parties and successful admission to both institutions.

Successful scholarship applicants will be invited to apply for admission to both universities from May 2025, and then formal outcomes of the position will be made, subject to provision of full application details and materials for entry to the programme at the agreed entry point in 2025-2026.

Successful scholarship applicants must meet all relevant entry requirements for admission including any immigration requirements that may be in place. Please see the advice on applying for research degree programmes at St Andrews and the PhD application guidelines at Bonn.

Contact

Email with queries: pgscholarships@st-andrews.ac.uk

Informal enquiries to supervisors: 
Professor Dr Arne Lützen (Bonn)
arne.luetzen@uni-bonn.de
Dr Larissa von Krbek (Bonn)
larissa.vonkrbek@uni-bonn.de
Dr Euan Kay (St Andrews)
ek28@st-andrews.ac.uk
Professor Douglas Philp (St Andrews)
d.philp@st-andrews.ac.uk