University of Southampton

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Photonic ring resonators are miniature optical waveguiding structures that enable light to reach very high intensities in closed, circular paths. The loop structure and wave nature of light results in interference of the field such that the system becomes highly resonant with a repeated pattern. Each ring supports a comb of highly defined, specific frequencies of light, the spacing between which depends on the optical path length of the ring. In devices with a high-quality factor (high-Q), the optical circulating power can build up from a small milliwatt input signal to reach kilowatts of circulating power. The small, guided area of these devices results in immense power densities, permitting non-linear optical effects at remarkably low powers, despite the host material having low intrinsic non-linear properties. However, the achievable quality (Q) of such resonators has so far been limited by the losses caused by the absorption and scattering of light by the materials and structures used to fabricate the ring. The last 20 years have enabled significant progress in integrated photonics (optical circuits that guide and manipulate light analogous to the microchip in electronics), including the reduction of loss. Refined processes using CMOS-based cleanroom techniques have allowed researchers to improve optical transmission from 10% per metre to approximately 99.9% per metre in miniaturised optical chips. This has enabled the fabrication of optical microresonators with ultra-high-Q factors (over 100 million). These wafer-based devices form key components in advanced integrated photonic circuits for narrow linewidth lasers and frequency combs. The first generation of these devices has enabled compact systems for radar as well as for precision timing and navigation. Despite significant progress in the field, waveguide loss in state-of-the-art integrated photonics devices has plateaued at 100x higher losses than those readily achieved in standard telecoms optical fibre used for long-haul broadband internet. This limit is not fundamental but technological, and if fibre-like losses could also be achieved in an integrated photonics package, this would enable a new generation of applications and improvements in performance. These include compact, robust gyroscopes and low-power frequency combs for navigation and precision timing, ultra-narrow linewidth lasers (mHz to Hz), and advanced photonic components for telecommunication networks. This proposal seeks to combine the benefits of optical fibre fabrication approaches and material science developed over the past 50 years with the latest state-of-the-art CMOS fabrication techniques used for integrated optics. We aim to develop a manufacturing technique that will produce integrated ring resonator devices with the highest Q ever achieved. Using flame hydrolysis deposition and other standard optical fibre manufacturing techniques, we will develop ultra-pure glass layers to negate absorption losses. In particular, we will focus on high phosphorus and germanium doping, which we have shown can lead to dramatically better uniformity during our recent Caltech-Southampton DARPA seed project. We will use optical fibre manufacturing techniques to reduce loss from absorbed hydrogen and develop diffusion and reflow processes to remove waveguide interface and scattering losses. Our ambition is to develop the foundations for a scalable manufacturing process for the next generation of ultra-high-Q micro-ring resonators. These devices will enable a range of new technologies, including rugged miniature gyroscopes for navigation, combs for precision timing in data networks and optical sources for quantum technologies.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

Abrupt climate shifts or 'tipping points' can lead to irreversible changes in the Earth System, with far-reaching impacts on environments, ecosystems, and human societies. Examples include the collapse of the Greenland and West Antarctic Ice Sheets which would raise global sea levels by several metres. Recent studies suggest this may occur at 1.5-2C warming above preindustrial levels, a threshold we are rapidly approaching. Once considered "low-likelihood, high-impact outcomes", each fraction of a degree increase in global average temperature escalates the threat of such tipping points. There are, however, considerable uncertainties surrounding the future timing and magnitude of these tipping points, in part due to observational records of climate being too short (covering only the last 100-200 years) to fully understand their complex processes. A longer-term context is therefore essential to help inform our future response. Combined with evidence from climate models, 'proxy' records of past climate change from natural archives, such as sediment and ice cores, can provide insights into past mechanisms and thresholds of change, helping to plan for, or even avoid, the most dangerous impacts. Despite the importance of proxy climate records, there is an order of magnitude less data available from the Southern Hemisphere compared to the Northern Hemisphere. Recent work has highlighted the crucial role of the southern westerly winds in driving and propagating global climate changes. For example, marked shifts in these winds have been implicated in both past and recently observed West Antarctic ice melt. The scarcity of data is particularly acute in the South Atlantic, resulting in an incomplete understanding of how climate signals propagate atmospherically through this region and their potential for triggering climate tipping points. A large potential exists for developing and validating new climate proxy records to resolve the South Atlantic 'missing link', providing much needed new insights into past and future climate processes, mechanisms, and impacts. This Fellowship will pioneer the development of new proxies of wind strength and temperature records from this region, using the latest technologies and interdisciplinary techniques. This dual approach is vital: wind proxies will identify the atmospheric processes that propagate climate signals, while temperature reconstructions capture the sensitivity of the climate system to these changes. These new data will be integrated within a global network of proxy records and model simulations to generate a more comprehensive understanding of past climate dynamics in the region. Analysis will focus on key time periods over the last 18,000 years during which the Earth System experienced changes of global significance. This multi-faceted approach will characterise past atmospheric processes and their climate impacts, providing a valuable context and insights for the future. The importance of this task cannot be overstated, given the devastating implications of triggering irreversible climate tipping points. The first half of 2023 has witnessed record-high ocean temperatures, Arctic and Antarctic sea ice extent at historic lows, extreme heatwaves worldwide, devastating wildfires, and a significant slowdown in ocean circulation. These events may be signs of impending climate tipping points, underscoring the reasons for concern and the need for urgent action. This Fellowship will position me as an international research leader at the forefront of climate tipping point science. At the University of Southampton, I am uniquely supported to lead a multi-disciplinary research team, build a progressive research culture, and to transform our understanding of the mechanisms and impacts of climate tipping points. Beyond the scientific goals, the Fellowship aims to create a tangible impact on society via education, policy, and public engagement to support a climate-informed nation.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-11

A new generation of semiconductors promises to revolutionise the solar energy market and offer exciting opportunities for light emission and novel quantum technologies. Hybrid metal halide perovskites offer exceptional cost-efficiency and can be implemented in solar cell devices that surpass the performance limits of conventional solar panels that are currently available. However, large-scale commercial application requires improvement of reproducibility and durability. Crystal lattice vibrations play a major role in regulating the optoelectronic properties and stability of semiconductors, and are particularly important in the unusually soft perovskite crystals. Understanding and controlling vibrational properties in these novel materials will be a critical step to consolidate record-breaking solar cell technologies that are key for the green energy transition. Of particular interest are low-dimensional configurations of hybrid perovskite semiconductors, which offer great potential for improving performance and stability of perovskite-based devices. For instance, colloidal nanoparticles can be employed as inks for material deposition with high crystalline quality and low density of defects, and two-dimensional layered materials have demonstrated great results for reducing losses and mitigating environmental degradation. The peculiar soft lattice dynamics in these low-dimensional materials have critical implications for the charge mobility, recombination dynamics, defect tolerance, and degradation mechanisms. However, the interplay between material morphology and composition and lattice dynamics is poorly understood, and previous studies have encountered conflicting results. This project will disentangle the impact of dimensionality and surface ligands on the vibrational properties of low-dimensional perovskite semiconductors. The strategy is based on integrated analysis of combined spectroscopic techniques and spatially-resolved measurements. A combination of visible and infrared optical probes, with supporting characterisation by electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, will be employed to monitor the crystal structure and the vibrational spectra. In addition, a quantitative analysis of the behaviour of vibrational modes under photoexcitation will reveal the occurrence and strength of vibrational coupling, providing a direct connection between the lattice dynamics and its impact on optoelectronic properties. Therefore, this project will achieve a much-needed understanding of the factors that regulate performance and stability in these very promising materials. Not only this will be instrumental for the technological application of low-dimensional perovskites, but it will also provide important insight into the role of interfaces in bulk and polycrystalline thin films. The knowledge acquired during these investigations will lead to the development of innovative strategies for tailoring interface properties and engineering strain in hybrid semiconductors. Furthermore, it will guide the  development of new materials with optimised charge transport, light emission purity and efficiency, thermal conductivity, and structural stability for various optoelectronic applications.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Doctoral Training Partnerships: a range of postgraduate training is funded by the Research Councils. For information on current funding routes, see the common terminology at https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/how-we-fund-studentships/. Training grants may be to one organisation or to a consortia of research organisations. This portal will show the lead organisation only.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Psychosis describes severe mental health problems (e.g., schizophrenia) and experiences common in the general population (e.g., paranoia, beliefs that others are a threat). Schizophrenia is among the leading causes of disability worldwide, and paranoia has serious negative effects on health and wellbeing in the general population and clinical groups, resulting in high costs for the society and National Health Service (NHS). Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a recommended psychotherapy for people with psychosis, but the recovery rate is poor. My PhD sought to improve therapies for psychosis and reduce paranoia in the general population using attachment theory, which proposes that our early relationships with caregivers affect the quality of our later relationships. For example, when caregivers are always available and responsive when we are upset, we learn that if we need help, someone will be there (called a 'secure' attachment style). However, if caregivers are not always available when we need them, we may learn that we need to show more distress to elicit attention ('insecure-anxious' attachment style), or we may learn to withdraw and suppress our feelings ('insecure-avoidant' attachment style). Insecure attachment styles are associated with poorer health and wellbeing. Research shows that people with psychosis (and paranoia specifically) tend to have insecure attachment styles, which are associated with poor outcomes. My PhD shows that people from the general population with high paranoia levels benefit from a 'secure attachment visualisation task' that aims to bring about feelings of safety and security in relationships; this task reduces paranoia and anxiety in people with high paranoia levels. My research suggests that attachment theory can help us to understand how paranoia develops and is maintained, but attachment is not routinely assessed and targeted in CBT for psychosis and there is limited information for the public about attachment and how this impacts mental health. A core aim of this fellowship is to deliver the impact from my PhD, which I propose to do via: (a) making a self-help tool for the public to reduce paranoia and improve quality of life by targeting attachment and related processes, which I will share with mental health charities/organisations and on public platforms (e.g., social media), (b) making an intervention tool for therapists to help treat patients with psychosis and insecure attachment styles, which I will share with the NHS; (c) increasing public awareness of how attachment styles impact paranoia and mental wellbeing via four blogs targeted at the general public; (d) organising events for the public, patients, and other stakeholders to present my research and obtain feedback; and (e) presenting my research at events attended by researchers and psychologists to engage with a wider academic network. Another aim of this fellowship is to support my career goals by building my academic profile and publishing my research in leading psychology journals. I will complete advanced training in statistics, develop my teaching experience (through giving lectures and supervising students), and write a proposal to obtain funding for my research. I will also publish two ongoing PhD studies: one looks at whether the secure attachment visualisation task reduces paranoia and improves quality of life in people with clinical psychosis; the other evaluates the trustworthiness and accuracy of a questionnaire of attachment styles. I will share all outputs generated on openly accessible websites and social media to reach a wide audience.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

The existence and location of a first order phase transition from nuclear to deconfined quark matter are one of particle physics's most exciting unanswered questions. With the discovery of gravitational waves from a binary neutron star merger in 2017 from the LIGO and VIRGO detectors, entirely new ways of investigating dense matter have emerged. Future third-generation gravitational-wave detectors like the planned Einstein Telescope (ET) in Europe will be able to not only measure the inspiral but the actual merger of the stars. Only by improving the microscopic physics implemented in numerical simulations, we will be able to decode and constrain the governing forces of particle physics imprinted in the merger signal and unlock ET's full potential. This includes a proper treatment of the microscopic physics of chemical equilibration and deconfinement in quark matter. In previous works, the effects of the weak interaction have been ignored, which dismisses important effects like bulk viscosity and phase conversion dissipation. The aim of QUARKSTAR is to investigate, compute and provide all the necessary microscopic physics for the proper treatment of quark matter in mergers. The main focus is to provide the results in a way that they can be used by the merger community and implemented in future simulations. This might open a completely new pathway to the discovery of quark matter in dense matter. As an expert on microscopic physics, transport, and weak interaction processes in neutron star mergers, Dr. Alexander Haber will join forces with the numerical general relativity group of Prof. Nils Andersson in Southampton. This ideal placement allows Dr. Haber to receive all relevant training for his future academic career while presenting the ideal combination of knowledge from microscopic physics to general relativity necessary to tackle the question of quark matter and deconfinement in neutron star mergers.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Doctoral Training Partnerships: a range of postgraduate training is funded by the Research Councils. For information on current funding routes, see the common terminology at https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/how-we-fund-studentships/. Training grants may be to one organisation or to a consortia of research organisations. This portal will show the lead organisation only.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

The primary aim of this postdoctoral fellowship is to publish findings from my PhD research which explored the everyday understandings and experiences of veganism and religiosity among a group of Muslim, Jewish, and Christian vegans in the UK. In particular, I intend to publish at least three journal articles, secure a book contract, and write my monograph, entitled "Faith Veganism", which will introduce this new social phenomenon and detail many of my key findings. It is extremely important that I publish my research conclusions, as they offer valuable insight into the intersections between veganism, ethics, sustainability, faith, and culture, insights which will become ever more important as we pursue sustainable futures. Another aim of this fellowship is to share this knowledge at major conferences, with one being the flagship sociological conference in the UK, and another two being major international conferences. This would enable my research to reach a global audience and ensure greater impacts for both my research and my development as an academic. A third aim of this fellowship is to produce research funding proposals for my next big project, which would look into sustainable behaviours in the UK. This would offer valuable insight into our understandings of sustainable and ethical practices and the challenges individuals face in adopting these practices. A final aim of this fellowship is to develop certain academic skills, such as lecturing, module design, and supervising, as well as broadening my knowledge of relevant theories and concepts, which I will achieve through regular reading and guidance from my mentor, Dr Bindi Shah.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Planetary climate models are essential to understanding the climate on Earth while also being windows into the many climates that may exist throughout the Universe. However, current models often fail to simulate planets that diverged from Earth-like conditions as they rely on Earth-centric formulations and suffer a shortage of first principle representations. This severely impacts our ability to understand and predict climate change and evolution, as the physical accuracy of the simulations is compromised. To solve this current gap in our knowledge, I will lead the development of the first planet climate simulator, Foundation. My central role in developing unprecedented 3D planetary atmospheric models from scratch sets me in an advantageous position to successfully lead this ambitious project. Our goal is to use the building blocks of physical processes we know occur in atmospheres, such as fluid flow equations, moist physics and cloud formation, and build up climate physics in a 3D model that achieves accurate simulations. Our novel model will address climate phenomena that remain unsolved in the Solar System due to current model limitations, namely the nature of Jupiter's chaotic atmosphere, Venus's deep atmospheric circulation and Titan's methane cycle. These are major gaps in our knowledge, even with more than 50 years of spacecraft data. A model based on Universal physics that can reproduce the most challenging climates of the Solar System is extremely valuable to evaluate Earth's climate model predictions. Our approach can strongly impact the robustness of Earth's changing climate simulations and the prediction of extreme weather events, which are becoming increasingly more critical to our living environment. Foundation's greater climate prediction capabilities will also revolutionise exoplanet atmospheric characterisation and provide a thorough theory on the climate stability of terrestrial planets, essential to our understanding of climate diversity.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Many important questions and grand challenges in research, industry, and society involve large and complex networks of chemical reactions. Some examples are: studying metabolic networks in humans; planning and optimizing chemical synthesis in industry and research labs; modeling the fragmentation process in mass spectrometry; developing personalized medicine; probing hypotheses of the origins of life; monitoring environmental pollution in air, water, and soil. In project TACsy, we will develop ground-breaking new computational methods for analyzing such networks of chemical reactions and we will train a new generation of excellent and innovative early stage researchers (ESRs) capable of evolving and applying these methods in research and industry. Combined, these efforts carry very strong potential for impact on the grand challenges mentioned above, on the EU commission priority on jobs, growth, investment, and competitiveness, and on the well-being of EU citizens. The research methodology of TACsy arises from the novel application of formalisms, algorithms, and computational methods from computer science to questions in systems chemistry. The first steps demonstrating the strong capabilities of this approach have recently been made. In TACsy, the ESRs will vastly expand these methods and their formal foundations, they will create efficient algorithms and implementations of them, and they will use these implementations for research in complex chemical systems in three flagship application areas. TACsy is a consortium of world-class, experienced scientists which will ensure excellent research training conditions for the ESRs in this highly interdisciplinary field. Through a carefully designed training programme and secondments at leading industry partners, the ESR will acquire a broad career perspective and a strong set of transferable skills. Their unique blend of competences from computer science and chemistry will further increase their high employment.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

In this research proposal I seek to understand the most energetic phenomena in the Universe - a newly discovered population of extremely luminous flares that are believed to be caused by supermassive black holes. I recently discovered the most energetic transient ever, but the origin of the energy is a mystery. With the convergence of cutting-edge simulations and data from revolutionary telescopes, I will delve into the mechanisms behind these dramatic outbursts, unveiling their causes and their far-reaching consequences on the galaxies they inhabit. Understanding the triggers and effects of such colossal energy releases is key for galaxy evolution, quasar activation, and studying the effects of general relativity. To realise these ambitions, I will follow a multi-faceted approach underpinned by a uniquely interconnected suite of simulations and the two most ambitious ground-based optical surveys ever conducted. I will build a robust theoretical framework for understanding extreme black hole flares. By combining simulations of galaxy evolution with stellar population synthesis and detailed accretion and explosion modelling, I endeavour to predict the intricate relationships between observable properties of black hole flares and their host galaxies. Different physical scenarios and explosion mechanisms exist in galaxies with, on average, different ages, dynamics, and chemical enrichment. I will compare these predictions to data as part of a novel forward modelling technique I have pioneered, using revolutionary datasets from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time, and the 4-metre Multi-Object Spectrograph Telescope. I will identify and characterise the first systematic sample of the new class of intensely luminous black hole flares. Using unrivalled access to legacy data from the Dark Energy Survey and the Zwicky Transient Facility, I will develop sophisticated pipelines to systematically detect and differentiate these phenomena from supernovae and active galactic nuclei. Since discovering the brightest long-lived transient ever, I have uncovered several similar events in archival data. We thus expect LSST with its order-of-magnitude increase in depth to provide a sample of a hundred or more, with the years-long durations almost guaranteeing spectroscopic follow-up. This sample, no matter what it comprises, will reveal physical processes never seen before, and highlight how critical these flares may be for the morphology of galactic nuclei and growth of black holes across cosmic time. The modelling technique is also ideally suited to study the origins of different types of supernovae. By adapting the technique to different input simulations, I aim to distinguish between which progenitor scenario causes them: single or double white dwarf? And if both channels, are they the same brightness? These questions have vital implications for cosmological measurements and provide a fundamental input to models of galaxy enrichment, and ultimately how our own galaxy and solar system formed and evolved. With a flexible approach that is able to take any detailed transient simulations and connect them to their galaxy environments, I will create a product that can be used across the astrophysics community, which is particularly exciting as the new observatories discover new, exciting and exotic classes of transient phenomena.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Context: Recent innovations in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (hereafter ‘AI’) are projected to transform society and influence how we conduct research. This project will deliver an innovative Training and Capacity Building (TCB) programme that will help to ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of digital skills concerning AI. To achieve this goal, the programme will be UK-wide, span the career life course, and will take the form of a partnership model characterised by collaboration with organisations who will benefit from co-delivering and receiving this TCB. To ensure that this programme is efficiently and effectively setup and delivered, it leverages the UK-wide partnership model of the UK's National Centre for Research Methods (NCRM) - a model that is well established, well-integrated with ESRC data and digital infrastructure investments, and well-known for its high-quality provision of TCB activities. This empowers the new programme to co-develop, at speed, TCB activities that are feasible, suitable and responsive to the needs of target audiences and Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) investments, including, e.g., Office for National Statistics, Environment Agency, and UK Data Service. The challenges and UKRI DRI strategic priorities that the project addresses: At present, AI techniques to handle and analyse existing and new forms of data are being developed but training from such research is limited, not easily accessible, and not always targeted at those most in need - all of which require urgent skills development via a TCB programme in this area. This project addresses all three objectives laid out in the call: to train researchers and non-expert users of data infrastructures to employ new computational techniques; to equip DRI professional staff with new skills, tools, and methods for creating, managing, and disseminating data access; and to expand engagement and upskilling to new users and communities. Aims and objectives: This programme aims to develop core skills training in AI methods to aid the use of different types of data, and to enable DRIs to trial new approaches to enhancing skills. It will meet four objectives: Effectively engage with partners/collaborators and identified key stakeholders and users, (including ESRC/UKRI investments). Identify and respond to emerging training and pedagogic needs. Develop and deliver TCB that is effective and efficient across three themes: Large Language Models (LLM) for (survey) research and data usage, AI in prediction in polling data, Use of AI to support environmental sustainability research. Maximise real-world impacts. Potential applications and benefits: The co-developed TCB programme will leverage the NCRM national training infrastructure (including nationwide partners expert in digital research and skills) in order to deliver shorter-term and longer-term benefits for individuals, organisations, and the wider research community. Target organisations include existing NCRM partners and existing UK DRI investments who are working with the new and emerging forms of data that are resulting from innovations in AI. Potential applications and benefits for individuals, organisations, and the wider research community include: upskilling; advancement of methodological and pedagogical practice; enhanced methods teaching capacity; improved DRI services; and improvements in the way individuals and organisations develop networks, gain new employment, secure funding, and implement methods. We will enable individuals to apply new and improved skills to research and data that has economic, societal, policy, and/or cultural benefit. In the longer-term, these benefits will impact upon and enable world-leading research.  

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Doctoral Training Partnerships: a range of postgraduate training is funded by the Research Councils. For information on current funding routes, see the common terminology at https://www.ukri.org/apply-for-funding/how-we-fund-studentships/. Training grants may be to one organisation or to a consortia of research organisations. This portal will show the lead organisation only.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

The UK's rivers, lakes, coastlines and seas represent, and are home to, some of our most significant and vulnerable heritage assets; from million-year-old tools and footprints, through millennia of shipwrecks, decades of downed aircraft, to historic towns and ports. These assets are part of dynamic environments that are undergoing unprecedented rates of change, whilst simultaneously being exposed to increasing pressure from development, tourism and conservation needs. These environments, however, represent complex challenges for archaeological investigation, being too shallow for larger ocean-going equipment. Heritage scientists, regulators and policy makers are therefore confronted with the problem of quantifying, investigating and managing this resource, while the national capacity to carry out these investigations is curtailed by limited access to equipment, because of high purchase and hire costs. This not only prevents knowledge gain and policy development, but innovation. This project brings together a constellation of fifteen institutions from across all four UK nations to address three critical needs for heritage science at (inter)national and regional scales. It stems from independent capability reviews, conversations with national agencies and regulators, museums, local government and community groups: 1. Capacity to effectively and agilely collect geophysical and geotechnical data from coastal and inland waters. This will be met through acquiring state of the art uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and sensors for bathymetric and sub-bottom survey, as well as geological sampling. The equipment will be openly advertised and bookable. 2. Access to equipment and expertise for 4D data capture and documentation at a range of scales and resolutions; from landscapes (kms) to architecture (metres) and objects (millimetres). This will be delivered through new assets and sharing existing equipment. Capability will include laser & structured light scanning, photogrammetry, uncrewed airborne vehicles (UAVs) with lidar, multispectral & 360 photography, 3D printing. 3. Capability for data processing, visualisation, engagement & archiving. Lack of access to higher performance computing, appropriate software and expertise has become a key bottleneck. We will support users through acquisition, processing and visualisation via a digital laboratory to ensure best quality data capture, outputs and archiving. While new infrastructure is required, people remain the greatest asset within heritage science. This facility will develop this asset through creating an inter-disciplinary community of practice to support heritage scientists operating in marine, coastal and freshwater locations. It will train researchers, community groups and other stakeholders on how to make best use of this resource and the outputs it can generate. It will pioneer new Artificial Intelligence and cloud-based methods for large scale data processing and visualisation, to unlock hidden potential and streamline workflows. With our partners we will explore new methods of engaging diverse audiences through a variety of digital and physical outputs. At the same time, it will lead by example, promoting and enabling a culture of equipment, data and knowledge exchange. The knowledge and understanding generated by this facility speaks directly to core heritage science challenges, but also those of other disciplines and industries (e.g. ocean & earth science, engineering, geography, renewable energy). It will help to answer questions with regards to the changing shape of our coastlines, rivers and seas. It will transform our ability to rapidly acquire data in difficult settings at short notice, giving critical insights into the impacts of climate change on heritage and society, as well as its potential future course.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Although the most advanced design standards and recent construction methods ensure that buildings save lives during extreme events, recent statistics have shown that the global loss caused by extreme events is steadily growing. This proposal presents a novel, Demountable, Resilient, and Sustainable Construction (DISC) technology for next-generation infrastructure. The DISC, which is inspired by the anatomy of the human spine, is formed of a multi-storey pin-pin steel frame building and a core shear wall that is manufactured offsite and assembled on the construction site. The wall consists of i) precast composite segments (vertebrae), ii) thin layers of a new, high-performance polymer-based, entangled composite wire material (ECWM) between the segments (intervertebral discs), and iii) unbonded post-tensioning tendons that tie these two layers together. Thus, the vertebrae provide lateral stability of the structure under low-amplitude loading (e.g. wind) and damp the vibration resulting from trains in adjacent areas. When the building is subjected to extreme loading such as earthquakes, the intervertebral discs are compressed and damp the movement of the whole structure, and the tendons re-center the entire building. Thus, the building remains operational immediately after extreme events, i.e. it is resilient. The DISC is also sustainable and durable against environmental threats as it is composed of glass fibre reinforced polymer filled with fibre-reinforced concrete and low-carbon composite materials. To characterise the dynamic behaviour and design parameters of the DISC technology, a numerical parametric model is first constructed, and the mechanical properties of the ECWM will be characterised using full-scale material tests. The overall response of the DISC will be verified through medium-scale shaking table tests of DISC prototypes. From these results, a new sustainability and resilience-based design framework will be constructed that can be used.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

The Parliamentary Thematic Research Lead on Business, Economics and Trade, will be embedded in the UK Parliament, working alongside parliamentary staff. This lead role will bring the research perspective to work carried out by select committees, libraries and Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST). The role will include leading horizon scanning and futures work and supporting parliamentary staff to take a strategic approach to planning their work programmes, including supporting the development of committee Areas of Research Interest. The Thematic Research Lead will identify upcoming needs for Parliamentary Academic Fellows and opportunities for co-production of briefings between academics and Parliamentary staff. They will connect and expand their networks (including research, learned societies and industry) to support parliamentary activities and will liaise with those in the Government CSA Network team. This will enhance engagement with those working in research to policy, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange. The Thematic Research Lead will liaise with UKRI and its research councils to enable increased parliamentary impact of UKRI investments. They will share insights from Parliament back to the research councils and UKRI; by doing so, they will contribute to the development of the research-policy ecosystem. The Thematic Research Lead will support with identifying the skills and experience needs of members of the parliamentary thematic team and relevant development and training opportunities. They will also help to identify opportunities for secondments, placements or people-exchanges both into and out of Parliament. Beyond working in their policy area, the Thematic Research Lead will work as part of a network with the other Thematic Research Leads to identify cross-cutting opportunities or issues and develop strategic responses, share information, learning, insights and best practice.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-09

Across the globe, a legal and environmental revolution is occurring. In places such as Ecuador, New Zealand, Columbia, Uganda, Spain, and Canada, communities and indigenous groups are protecting their local ecosystems from human exploitation by granting them rights. The "Rights of Nature" (RoN) movement marks a radical shift away from a view in which nature is seen as a resource for human use, and to a model in which nature is recognised as part of our moral and legal community. As such, the RoN movement has been presented as exactly the paradigm shift needed to address the environmental crises we currently face. This movement is steadily growing, with at least 27 countries passing RoN legislation, and many others currently developing it. Though the method of recognising these rights is different in each context, RoN legislation generally has two features: a recognition that we have responsibilities to nature which goes beyond human use of it, and a recognition that indigenous and local communities are best placed to represent the interests of nature in a legal context. Recognising this, RoN legislation often involves the creation of new representative roles which give previously disenfranchised communities the ability to manage their local environment through representing its rights and interests. As such, RoN connects environmental and social sustainability, and embodies the idea the health and empowerment of local communities is intimately connected with the health and empowerment of ecosystems. The RoN movement in the UK is slowly growing. In the last three years, community charters, motions in local councils, and community declarations across the UK have recognised nature's rights, with some attempting to pass RoN policy. But these fledgling RoN initiatives face at least two serious obstacles. Firstly, these groups are for the most part isolated from each other and from the global RoN movement. Secondly, there currently exists little academic research into the possibility and plausibility of recognising RoN in the UK which these groups might draw on. This project will address both issues. This project aims to bring existing RoN initiatives in the UK together to form a new network, to facilitate communication, the exchange of information, and possible collaboration on RoN action in the future. Through a series of workshops, this network will explore ways of understanding nature's rights; how RoN can or should be represented; the legal frameworks in the UK which might enable or prevent RoN; and how local communities can collect ecological data to support their nature advocacy. An interdisciplinary team of academics will guide these workshops and, in conjunction with the network of practitioners, undertake a definitive exploration into the possibility and plausibility of RoN in the UK context. Comprised of a philosopher, a legal theorist, and an ecologist, this interdisciplinary team will produce a definitive report into the conceptual grounding, legal pathways, and ecological measurement which could underpin any future RoN legislation. As such, the project will be of lasting benefit to local communities, policymakers, and legal practitioners interested in RoN within the UK and elsewhere.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-08

The project brings together two human geographers, a physical geographer, a zoologist, a food policy nutritionist and a cultural humanities scholar, with poultry industry project partners, poultry R&D subcontractors, policymakers and consumers. It does this through the following work-streams: WS1: Socio-Metabolic Consumption: Feeding and Eating Chicken. We will undertake qualitative research interviews with UK chicken consumers (foodbank users, middle-income), chicken retailers, and poultry feed manufacturers, integrators, food production operatives, and nutrition biochemists, to discover experiences of nutritional insecurity, metabolic vulnerability, and tactics of nutritional and metabolic resilience. WS2: Socio-Metabolic Environments: Chicken Production in Time and Place.? We will use farmer interviews and ethnographies alongside existing data to study the drivers of recent historic variability in chicken production and trade (weather, input costs, regulatory changes, etc.) to assess the goods and harms for chickens, land and water environments, biodiversity, poultry producers and integrators, consumers and retailers.?We will produce a model of resilient industrial socio-metabolics in order to identify risks and potential interventions under current and future climate and policy scenarios. WS3: Socio-Metabolic Politics: Risks and Ethical Principles of Chicken. We will convene stakeholder workshops, publish a series of policy briefs and podcast interviews, to co-develop a novel policy instrument of ethical principles for resilient food system thinking that is relevant and has buy-in from stakeholders across the sector. The project will create increased interdisciplinary research capacity between academics and non-academic partners. valuable insights and policy interventions to strengthen a resilient UK food system that is ethical, sustainable and equitable, supporting improved human and chicken health and wellbeing. a unique socio-metabolic dynamic foodsystems framework for understanding how the poultry sector has, and could, approach resilience to extreme weather and trade disruptions. a socio-metabolic resilience modelling blue-print for other food industries to follow.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-08

"Can One Hear the Shape of a Drum?" is question made famous by a 1966 article in American Mathematical Monthly. Subsequent research has confirmed that the drum shape can indeed be accurately identified exclusively from the acoustic signal, in almost all cases. In this proposal, we take this question to the extreme, and ask "Can One Hear the 3D Shape of a Crater?" except, rather than a drum that is hit, we have a crater that has just been produced through the removal of material from an incident laser pulse and the process is accompanied by an acoustic emission signature. Can we therefore read this signature to calculate the three-dimensional profile of the laser machined crater? Can we hear... light? What we are proposing is the extremely ambitious objective of a real-time acoustic-imaging system for laser machining, where the acoustic source is the laser machining process itself. Directly imaging the sample in real-time with a camera is not possible due to the intense plasma that is generated during machining. Unlocking real-time acoustic-imaging capability through audio interrogation will unlock a new paradigm in laser materials processing, and allow real-time task optimisation, error correction, and lead to significant improvements in energy efficiency, quality control and productivity. The key ingredient is the application of deep learning for recognising these audio signatures, and the algorithms and computing hardware for this application have only just become available.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-08

Plankton in the ocean, microscopic plants (phytoplankton) and tiny animals (zooplankton) that eat the plants, are vital to marine life and to Earth's climate. They form the base of food chains that support ocean ecosystems, and remove carbon from the atmosphere and bury it in (or export it to) the ocean depths. It is currently thought that plankton are responsible for removing 6 billion tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere each year; fossil fuel burning releases about 10 billion tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere annually. Without this export of carbon in the ocean, atmospheric CO2 would be twice the current concentration. The importance of plankton to food chains and carbon export depends on the species of plankton. Larger phytoplankton are better at supporting food chains and at exporting carbon because (1) larger phytoplankton sink quicker, removing carbon away from the sea surface and contact with the atmosphere, and (2) larger phytoplankton support larger zooplankton, which are eaten by fish and which also excrete large, fast-sinking faecal pellets which quickly transfer carbon away from the atmosphere. We have discovered a new link between which types of plankton can grow and the tides flowing over a mid-ocean ridge. The ocean is layered, with warmer, less dense layers at the surface and colder, denser layers deeper in the ocean. When tidal currents flow up and down the flanks of a mid-ocean ridge, these layers are pushed up and down, causing waves on the layers called "internal tidal waves". These internal tidal waves reach up to the sun-lit upper ocean, where photosynthesis by the phytoplankton takes place. We think these waves have two important effects. (1) The waves cause mixing between the layers of ocean, bringing nutrients from deep in the ocean up to the phytoplankton; this will help extra phytoplankton growth, but crucially it is also known that extra nutrient supplies allow larger species of phytoplankton to grow. (2) The waves move the phytoplankton up and down; this provides more light to the phytoplankton, because as they are moved upward they get closer to the light at the sea surface and are able to grow more. Thus, we think that the internal tidal waves create more growth of larger plankton over a mid-ocean ridge, which means better food for marine food chains and more carbon exported away from the atmosphere. This new link may explain why ridges support such diverse ecosystems, and it also means that the ocean over ridges is far better at exporting carbon than we previously thought. We have calculated that, for the whole Atlantic Ocean, including the tidal effect of the mid-Atlantic ridge adds about 50% to current estimates of how much carbon the plankton export. This means that current understanding of the ocean's role in Earth's climate, which ignores the ridge-tide effect, significantly underestimates how much CO2 plankton remove from the atmosphere. We need to fix this because our predictions of our future climate depend on having correct descriptions of the processes that govern atmospheric CO2. We will conduct an expedition to the mid-ocean ridge in the S. Atlantic. We will measure the internal tidal waves and the upward mixing of nutrients, and the effect the waves have on light received by phytoplankton. We will measure how fast the phytoplankton and zooplankton grow in response to these waves, how the species of plankton change over the ridge, and how much carbon is exported downward over the ridge compared to the adjacent ocean basin. This will be the first time that internal tidal waves are linked to patterns of carbon export in the ocean: internal tidal waves occur wherever there are ridges or seamounts in the ocean and our results will have important implications for our understanding of ocean food webs and Earth's climate.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-08

The proposed study aims to examine the interaction between light and matter at a microscopic level, which has significant implications for both fundamental scientific research and technological advancement. With recent advancements in the fields of photonics and solid-state device technology, researchers can now analyze the interaction between photons and quantum emitters with greater precision and control than ever before. By using new theoretical and numerical tools, this project seeks to expand our understanding of how this interaction can affect the underlying system, not only by altering its energy but also its properties. Specifically, the study will explore how we can manipulate light to change the electronic properties of quantum objects and create devices that can control electromagnetic fields with microscopic precision. One potential application of this research is the development of new sub-wavelength optical tweezers that can manipulate individual molecules and particles with unparalleled accuracy. This could have significant implications in fields such as biomedicine, nanotechnology, and materials science. This research will use both theoretical modeling and experimental testing to investigate the potential applications of these new findings. Ultimately, this study could lead to the creation of new technologies that harness the power of light and quantum mechanics, revolutionizing areas such as healthcare, energy, and telecommunications. Moreover, through outreach activities and social media, the researcher aims to share her findings with a wider audience, including young people interested in pursuing careers in science and technology. She believe that by promoting scientific literacy and engaging the public in their research, we can foster a greater appreciation for the importance of scientific inquiry and inspire future generations of scientists and innovators.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-08

The contrail climate impact of future low-CO2 aircraft will be assessed, incorporating rigorous analysis of turbulence/microphysics interactions into climate-optimised aircraft design. Aircraft contrails and contrail cirrus may account for more than half of the climate forcing from aircraft operations to date. Radically different airframe and propulsion concepts have been developed as a means to reduce CO2 emission, but the impact of these developments on contrail formation has not been part of the design process. Contrail formation in the aircraft wake is affected by the wing planform and the type and positioning of the propulsors, but established contrail formation models have been developed only with reference to conventional tube-wing aircraft architectures. This limits their applicability - alternative aircraft technologies affect the distribution of ice particles that form, requiring re-evaluation of the climate forcing that results from choosing different technology pathways. Building on the project team's expertise in modelling complex interactions of mixing, microphysics and atmospheric processes, methods will be developed to assess how different aircraft and propulsion architecture choices affect the climate impact of future aircraft. Climate-optimised development of advanced aircraft concepts will be demonstrated. Effects of advanced aircraft architectures on contrail development will be studied computationally and incorporated into a new contrail simulation approach that accounts for detailed contrail microphysics in high-throughput design calculations. Methods for assessing the climate forcing due to alternative technologies and operating strategies will be incorporated into freely available software that takes account of the detailed development of contrail cirrus. Through participation of forward-looking airframe and propulsion system manufacturers, this project will directly inform the path we take to minimise the overall climate impact of future aviation.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-07

Of all the matter and energy in our universe, approximately 5% is made of visible particles. These particles are called fermions and they interact among themselves with the force carriers, called bosons. The Higgs field is responsible for the elementary particles to acquire their masses, including the associated Higgs boson. The discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva, was thus a milestone in the history of particle physics. The Higgs mechanism was hypothesised by three independent groups in 1964 with the aim of curing mathematical inconsistencies in describing matter at the smallest of scales. This discovery completed the so-called Standard Model of particle physics (SM), painting a clear picture of elementary particles which makes up all known matter. Two of its proponents, Peter Higgs and François Englert, were awarded the Nobel Prize in 2013. Yet, inconsistencies in the understanding of fundamental interactions at high energy scales still persist, and can be remedied by several theories beyond the Standard Model (BSM) like Supersymmetric, Compositeness models, and more. Moreover, neutrino, astrophysical, and cosmological observations reveal the limitations of SM to describe all observed phenomena. Part of these mysteries are referred to as Dark Matter (DM) and Dark Energy, the potential explanations of which are among the greatest scientific challenges of our times. Since the discovery of the Higgs, a community-wide search for BSM physics is prioritised at the LHC. However, to date, no unambiguous hints for new physics have been found at the LHC. These hints are thus expected to manifest as tiny deviations with respect to SM expectations in the production and decay rates for scattering processes at the LHC. The solution to discover the so-called unknown unknowns relies heavily on large experimental data sets, and equally matched theoretical precision in the SM and beyond. From projection studies of the future runs of the LHC, it is strongly expected that future colliders will be imperative to answer some of the previously mentioned fundamental observations. The main focus of my proposal covers phenomenological analyses with unprecedented levels of precise quantum corrections to multifarious particle physics interactions in the context of colliders, and DM observables in the context of astrophysical experiments. These corrections are conceptually and computationally complex and require the usage and development of dedicated software packages. One of the main purposes of this proposal is performing precise theoretical calculations to utilise the experimental data fully and to find new physics that are still eluding us. To achieve such precise theoretical predictions, I employ a class of tools referred to as the Effective Field Theories (EFTs) that optimally parametrise unknown large-scale physics and help in extracting the various properties (spin, mass, couplings, charge, etc.) of the elementary particles. The EFTs also help us in understanding whether or not there can be additional particles in our universe. Another important purpose is to measure how the Higgs boson self-interacts. The proposal addresses other aspects concerning the nature of the Higgs boson including the quantification of rare interactions of the Higgs boson. The more precisely we estimate and measure these properties, the better we understand the dynamics of our universe. Lastly, I propose to obtain very precise theoretical predictions in the context of BSM theories giving rise to DM to match the percent-level experimental precision. We know that DM makes up close to 27% of our universe, is most likely electrically neutral, and can interact gravitationally. Yet, we do not know the mass and interaction strength of such particles. I propose precise theoretical calculations and minimisation of the theoretical uncertainties both of which will be of paramount importance in the discovery of DM.

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-07

Multi-parameter flow cytometry and cell and nuclei sorting are indispensable in modern biological sciences, enabling advanced single-cell level analysis of biological, environmental, and clinical samples and allowing deep molecular phenotyping and isolation of selected cells for further in-depth investigations bringing sophisticated understanding of how a single cell or microbe, a tissue or a whole organism work and interact with their environment. A better understanding of these mechanisms will guide us to more effective solutions to global health and sustainability challenges. This multiuser proposal builds on a pressing need for a system capable of spectral high-performance, multi-parameter fluorescence-activated cell/nucleus sorting that will serve a cross-disciplinary consortium of research groups in life sciences at the University of Southampton and external academic and industrial collaborators within the South of England, investigating the mechanisms underpinning human health and aging, and food and environmental sustainability. The system will integrate significant advancements in cell and nuclear sorting, allowing the highest power, performance, and flexibility, enabling researchers across diverse disciplines in biological and computational sciences and bioengineering, with the highest relevance to those interested in temporal and spatial changes in cell states within tissues and microbial and environmental systems and how this defines their heterogeneities, functional relationships, and interaction with their environment. The scientific interests of the flow cytometry consortium span areas of biology, ranging from healthy ageing, cell and developmental biology, bioengineering, sustainable agriculture, biofilms, antimicrobial resistance, host-microbe interaction, and environmental sustainability. This includes research into microbial communities and biofilms, for applications, from combatting antimicrobial resistance to food security. The instrument would enable deep molecular phenotyping of heterogeneous bacteria within a biofilm to decipher the mechanisms underpinning their interactions and the basis of their resistance at a single-cell resolution, with a view of finding approaches to better disperse them. Other researchers aim to discover factors that influence early mammalian development and tissue growth throughout life combining three-dimensional organotypic cultures (referred to as organoids) with single cell/nucleus sequencing and artificial intelligence; and uncover the molecular and cellular organisation of the nervous system that underlies our ability to learn and remember. Researchers would be able to accurately isolate heterogeneous single breast stem cells and characterise the molecular mechanisms that dictate how they proliferate and contribute to breast development and architecture. The equipment would allow researchers to distinguish between heterogeneous immune cells to enhance our understanding of their contribution to inflammation, in health and autoimmune diseases. It would enable researchers to accurately isolate skeletal cells from the sea urchin and sea cucumbers and their relatives to discover the evolutionary mechanisms of biomineralization. This is also relevant to researchers exploring cellular mechanisms of growth and cell fate in osteoarthritis using nuclei extracted from calcified tissues including growth plate cartilage. The advanced multi-parameter sorter will act as a hub that catalyses new cross-disciplinary collaborations between its diverse user base, from basic biology to bioengineering and biotechnology. This will be facilitated through established regional partnerships with the BBSRC National Biofilm and Innovation Centre (NBIC) and South Coast Biosciences Doctoral Partnership (SoCoBio DTP).

UKRI Gateway to Research · FY 2024 · 2024-07

The UK has exceptionally rich and diverse archival collections held in public, private and charitable institutions, but currently, there is no unified approach to conserving or disseminating this information. The UK is unique within the field of Holocaust research in Europe, associated as it is with a rich history of refuge and rescue and the innovation driven by the infrastructure will maintain the UK's world leadership in this field. Our objectives are twofold: 1. To coordinate diverse institutions across the UK, ensuring long-term sustainability of Holocaust research a. Creating communities of experts equipped to undertake ground-breaking research, transforming Holocaust knowledge and education in the UK. Working groups will be formed within the EHRI-UK consortium to address issues relating to Holocaust Studies and digital humanities. b. Connecting resources and archival sources through shared innovative digital research tools to create a state-of-the-art digital infrastructure. EHRI-UK will increase representation of the UK within the EHRI Portal, doubling the number of archives currently represented within the Portal within the first 5 years of funding. c. Providing a framework for member organisations to work together and apply for external project-based funding. Within the first 2 years of EHRI-UK, the consortium will submit its first project proposal to a relevant funding body. d. Offering fellowships and training opportunities for researchers, archivists, and heritage professionals. In the first 2 years, EHRI-UK will pilot a scheme for Regional Placements and launch the EHRI-UK National Research Fellowships. 2. To facilitate the continued participation of the UK in the European EHRI-ERIC a. Membership of the EHRI-ERIC enables beneficial access to the trans-national network of research, expertise, and digital know-how. Members of the EHRI-UK consortium will participate in trans-national workings groups of communities of experts. b. Participation creates opportunities for the UK to access European research funds through infrastructure project-based funding. Through the EHRI-ERIC and trans-national working groups, trans-national projects will be identified and applied for. The UK will participate in at least one major application in the first 3 years of existence. National node funding to create and sustain the UK Holocaust Research Infrastructure will cover infrastructure expenses, personnel costs, event and networking organisation, research placements for undergraduate and postgraduate students, research fellowships for researchers in the UK, and essential travel.