Job Description

Company DescriptionBy 2050, the planet could be using twice as much electricity compared to today. Are you interested in contributing and helping to shape the future of the world's energy? If so, read on.Fusion, the process that powers the Sun and Stars, is one of the most promising options for generating the cleaner, carbon-free energy that our world badly needs.UKAEA leads the way in realizing fusion energy, partnering with industry and research for groundbreaking advancements. Our goal is to bring fusion electricity to the grid, supported by tomorrow's power stations. In pursuit of our mission, UKAEA embraces core values: Innovative, Committed, Trusted, and Collaborative.The RoleAre you looking for an exciting opportunity to make a difference? Join our team and contribute to the future of fusion energy.We offer excellent opportunities for motivated and enthusiastic undergraduate students studying at UK Universities to join our 8-12-week summer placement scheme. The scheme is designed for students entering their penultimate or final year of studies, with potential opportunities post-graduation.Our scheme gives you a unique opportunity to contribute to the development of one of the most advanced sources of sustainable and clean energy. During your summer programme, you will experience a broad range of diverse tasks, work on real projects, and gain invaluable experience within the fusion energy sector. UKAEA offers a nurturing and supportive community for you to gain some valuable work experience in a fascinating and rapidly evolving industry.OverviewNanoscale Creep Measurements in Reduced Activation Ferritic-Martensitic Steels for Future Fusion ApplicationsReduced activation ferritic-martensitic (RAFM) steels are a recent class of radiation-resistant steels designed to be used as the structural components of power-producing fusion reactors. Their goal is to provide high-temperature strength and creep resistance while consisting only of alloying elements that do not produce high-level radioactive waste after use. The current generation of RAFM steels are limited to operating temperatures below 550xc2xb0C, after which the alloys are susceptible to grain boundary unpinning, phase instability and a loss in creep strength. This is attributed to the coarsening of the M23C6 precipitates at high temperature.Advanced RAFM steels, or ARAFM steels, are therefore being developed to operate above 550xc2xb0C and increase the thermodynamic efficiency of the power plant. The key consortium within the UK in this area is operating within the NEURONE programme, which seeks to combine an optimised alloy chemistry with refinements in the thermomechanical treatment (TMT) of the alloy in order to produce a microstructure strengthened by a fine dispersion of metastable, radiation-resistant MX-type precipitates.As these steels are designed to operate at high temperatures for long periods (up to four years), resistance to creep deformation is a key materials design parameter. However, traditional creep testing is (a) very time consuming, requiring upwards of tens of thousands of hours, and (b) requires substantial material volumes, precluding testing on thin, ion-irradiated layers.This project will use a novel, newly-developed creep testing method based upon nanoindentation measurements, designed to produce rapid assessments of the creep response of small, irradiated samples. Indentation creep tests using a wide range of indenter geometries and loading profiles will be refined and applied to our library of (non-active) irradiated samples in order to determine the correlations between alloy composition and creep response, as well as to understand how these deformation mechanisms change after irradiation. Post-test electron-microscopy characterisation to understand how deformation is accommodated within the microstructure will also be performed in support of knowledge-based materials design strategies.QualificationsEssential Requirements:

• To be considered you will need to be working towards a relevant degree and will be required to have the right to work in the UK.

Additional InformationA full list of our benefits can be found hereUKAEA's mission is clean energy for all, and we welcome talented people from all backgrounds who want to help us achieve our mission. We are under-represented from some groups and so want to encourage applications in particular from women in STEM, people from Black British Caribbean and African backgrounds and from Pakistani and Bangladeshi British backgrounds. Our Executive team, supported by our 'Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion' (EDI) and Wellbeing and our EDI Networks actively promote Inclusion and takes steps to increase diversity within our organization. We reinforce best practices in recruitment and selection and evaluate approaches to remove barriers to success.UK Atomic Energy Authority is committed to being accessible. Please email if you have any questions or require help or adjustments to compete on a fair basis, for example, changes to the way we interview or share information.Please note that vacancies are generally advertised for 4 weeks but may close earlier if we receive a large number of applications.

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