About the job

For a position as a PhD Candidate, the goal is a completed doctoral education up to an obtained doctoral degree.

The Department of Electric Energy (IEL) at NTNU has a vacancy for a full-time 100% position as a PhD candidate within the field of measurement and modeling of electric field stresses in non-linear materials under power electronics converter stresses.

During the last decades power electronic converters (PECs) have been introduced to control and transform electric power – and permeate society for numerous applications: zero-emission transport, renewable energy, and transmission. The PEC is a key technology to succeed with electrification of society and reach the climate goals set out by EU and UN. PECs function as on/off switches, resulting in sharp-edged square wave voltages with high repetition rate. These sharp voltage flanks introduce different stress distributions internally in components, and are challenging to model and predict. An important part of insulation systems in high voltage components are materials with non-linear electric properties used to reduce stresses in regions with high electric field, such as cable terminations and end windings of rotating machines. These materials are mainly designed for operation at 50 Hz AC and impose a risk for premature failure when operated with PECs.

The work of this project will be associated with the project SwoP (Impact of switched voltage waveforms on power components and grids), which is a collaborative project involving NTNU, SINTEF, and several national and international industry partners. The prospective candidate will be part of a project team that works in close collaboration with SINTEF and industry partners. The PhD Candidate will be employed at NTNU, and the workplace will be in Trondheim, in connection with this research project. 

The main supervisor will be Professor Kaveh Niayesh (NTNU) and the co-supervisor will be Dr. Espen Eberg(SINTEF Energy Research). 

The position reports to the Head of Department.

Read more about the position and how to apply here: https://www.jobbnorge.no/en/available-jobs/job/266630/phd-in-characterization-of-electric-insulation-systems-under-power-electronic-converter-stresses