Are you an ambitious engineer or aspiring researcher interested in continuing your academic journey and simultaneously contribute to the development of high-performance low light photovoltaics, leading to a better world? In collaboration with FADOS and Chalmer University, the Swedish energy impact company Epishine offers an exciting 3 year-project with the ambition to lead a talented researcher to a doctorate degree. Perhaps it’s you?

About Epishine
Epishine is a Swedish energy impact company, reimagining the capture of light with market leading printed organic solar cells. Our technology captures indoor light to make electronics self-powered, making cables, disposable batteries and unnecessary maintenance a thing of the past. At Epishine, we foster a culture of collaboration, creativity and innovation where we encourage our employees to challenge the status quo and drive innovation. Go to www.epishine.com to read more about Epishine and our vision.

About FADOS
FADOS, Fundamentals and Applications of Doped Organic Semiconductors, is a consortium composed of eight universities, four research institutes, and four companies from EU countries, the UK and Switzerland. The mission of FADOS is to achieve targeted modification of semiconductor properties through electronic doping to control and modify its electronic characteristics. The project’s goal is to develop fundamental understanding and innovative fabrication processes to solve urgent problems in organic electronic devices, and enable new components with sustainable functionalities. Collaboration with industry partners will enhance the translation of research into real-world applications.

The 17 Doctoral candidates recruited for this international project will receive training at the forefront of research and innovation in organic electronics. Moreover, the network will provide Doctoral candidates with exposure to academic and commercial working environments through a balanced secondment plan, and access to a complete training programme complementing scientific skills with personal and entrepreneurial skills, including communication to various audiences, career development, intellectual property and startup-funding.

The doctoral candidates will form a strong cohort through participation in seven network-wide events as well as secondments and collaborations, which entail travel to several different EU countries.

Project task and objectives
In the FADOS program, you will be working on a project facilitated by Epishine for 3 years, starting from February/March 2026. Whilst you will be enrolled in a doctoral program at Chalmers University, you will be based in Epishine’s office in Linköping, Sweden.

The title of the research project is “Robust and selective doping strategies for industrial application.” The project will focus on application of doping strategies for interlayers in Organic PhotoVoltaics (OPV). The context will be that of Epishine’s unique processing methodology, lamely using lamination, which opens up new material classes that aren't typically used in OPV. Molecular doping, as utilized in organic semiconductors, is compatible with solution based processing making it a highly facile method to increase contact layer conductivity and selectivity, boosting solar cell performance. On the flip side, it suffer from a number of potential drawbacks associated with the introduction of reactive heteromolecules. These drawback include diffusion of dopant molecules, leading to loss of doping efficiency or degradation of neighbouring layers. The work will primarily constitute balancing the positive and, if possible fully cancel out, negative effects of said dopants. Careful choice of matrix compatibility, chemistry and processing routes will be necessary along with a thorough elucidation of failure modes in order to circumvent these.

The objectives of the project are:

1) Screen dopant chemistries for co-processing compatibility with high IE commercially available p-type polymers;
2) Explore strategies to mitigate and determine impact of failure modes, primarily diffusion of dopant species into neighbouring layers;
3) Investigate influence of co-factors to doping stability such as processing and aging in different atmospheres;
4) Utilize acquired knowledge to realize high efficiency IPV devices containing doped collection layers.

A balance has to be struck between addressing the problem statement in terms of a solution to said problem as well as the theoretical framework surrounding the issue. While there is ample support available from both direct supervisors and several OPV PhD holders within the technical team, the project remains highly individualized. We provide you with the project topic and problem statement, but the path forward is yours to define. Think of it as us giving you a map and a compass—it's your responsibility to chart the course and navigate the journey.

The project also includes three planned secondment periods:

• 2 months at Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona: Exploring combinatorial techniques for high throughput experiments
• 2 months at Chalmers Technical University: Learning fundamentals about doping mechanisms, thermo-structural properties and associated characterization techniques;
• 2 months at FlexEnable: alternative view of industrialization of organic semiconductors

Who are we looking for?

For this project, we are looking for someone with a Master of Science in chemistry, physics or material science (or who will be awarded this before March 2026). If your educational background is not within these fields, please motivate how your education overlaps these fields. It his also beneficial if you have previous laboratory experience.

Whilst academic and professional merits are important, we also value your personal competencies. We are looking for a personable individual who is friendly, approachable and easy to get along with. You have natural problem-solving and analytical skills which supports your creativity, critical thinking and decision-making when working with complex issues. We also value your ability to be self-reliant and taking responsibility for structuring your tasks and driving your processes forward on your own, demonstrating your initiative and perseverance to stay focused on long-term objectives. Again, we provide the map and the compass in the project, but you’re the one responsible for figuring out the way forward.

Eligibility for FADOS programme:

• At the time of recruitment, be in the first four years of their research career and have not been awarded a doctoral degree.
• Mobility rule: The applicant must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the host institute (Sweden) for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the recruitment. Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, and time spent as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention are not taken into account.
• Demonstrate their ability to understand English and express themselves fluently in speech and writing.
• The applicant can be of any nationality.
  

Terms of employment
Requested starting date: 1^st of February 2026 or by agreement
Employment: 36 months contract including 6 month trial period

A competitive salary in accordance with the MSCA regulations for Doctoral Researchers will be offered, including a living allowance, a mobility allowance, and a family allowance (if applicable).

Application procedure
The application period closes on the 19th of October. The Epishine recruitment process will be the following:

• Initial selections based on application documents
• Short phone interview 
• Digital interview 
• On-site visit to our facilities in Linköping with case presentation, logic- and personality tests and interviews
• Reference calls

Please enclose the following in your application:

• CV (preferably in Europass format)

• If you have finished your degree, certified copies of the bachelor's and master's degree certificates with the Diploma Supplement (DS) as approved by the EU Commission for degrees completed in European universities (when applicable). Official translations into English (if the original documents are in a language other than English)
• List of publications (if any) your contributions in the publication
• References: Contact details of 2 or more referees included in the CV
• Motivation letter: maximum 1 page where you introduce yourself and present your qualifications; you may include also your previous research fields and main research results. Please emphasize your future goals career-wise.
• Copy of passport