Prof. Koen Kuijken

Leiden University

About the Leiden Observatory

Leiden Observatory is the astronomy department of Leiden University. It is one of the oldest astronomy departments in the world, with a rich tradition of research on a wide range of topics. Leiden is a charming old town in the Netherlands with an active, and very international, student life.

Our department consists of over 20 faculty and 50 postdoctoral researchers, and currently hosts about 80 PhD students. We have a number of places for students who apply for scholarships from their home countries, including the projects in the list below. Topics include astrochemistry, exoplanets, radio astronomy, Xray astronomy, and stellar dynamics.

These projects are available for start in 2021. Preferred start date is September or October.

If you are interested in any of these positions please contact me (kuijken [at] strw.leidenuniv.nl) for an interview. We will be happy to tell you more!

Project titles and supervisor(s)

• Tidal Disruption Events in Optical Surveys, Dr. Sjoert van Velzen
• Studying exoplanet's interior-atmosphere connection, Dr. Yamila Miguel
• Advanced atomic data and modeling for X-ray spectroscopy, Prof. Jelle Kaastra, Dr. Liyi Gu
• Astrochemistry (2 projects), Prof. Harold Linnartz
• Interpreting Galactic and Extra-galactic Molecular Observations Through Statistical Methods, Prof. Serena Viti, Dr. Jon Holdship
• Non-imaging VLBI Astrometry and the inner Galaxy, Prof. Huib van Langevelde
• Radio feedback and the evolution of galaxies and their massive black holes, Prof. Huub Rottgering
• An adversarial approach to astrophysical simulations, Prof. Simon Portegies Zwart
• The formation and evolution of the Oort cloud, Prof. Simon Portegies Zwart
• Chaos in the Universe, Prof. Simon Portegies Zwart
• Adaptive optics for exoplanet imaging, Prof. Niek Doelman
• Starburst galaxies, Dr. Ana Monreal Ibero