The end of 2026 summer placements
29 Sep 2026
As September comes to an end, our summer placement scheme also finishes for another year! This scheme gives current undergraduate students the opportunity to work at STFC, for up to 12 weeks over the summer. There is a diverse range of placements offered every year, with previous projects at Technology ranging from developing sensors for the Electron-Ion Collider, to testing ASICs with space imaging applications.
Not only do students gain valuable experience while working on exciting projects, they also get the chance to explore our sites with tours across a range of departments and facilities. This year, students had the chance to tour Diamond Light Source, the Central Laser Facility and ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, on top of departmental tours.
This programme has become increasingly popular, attracting thousands of applicants every year, with a high number applications per role. In 2026, we welcomed five summer students to Technology, working in a range of roles – from detector development to science communication. We caught up with them to discuss their experience while on placement.
Science Communications
Jessica is a second year undergraduate, studying for an MSci in Physics at Imperial College London. She shared her experience as a science communication summer placement student:
“I spent 10 weeks in Communications in the Technology Department. My day-to-day work was very varied: writing LinkedIn posts for the Technology page; creating longer articles for the website; producing video content for various channels; and even volunteering at public engagement events.
“My longest project was an interview video about the sensors we make for cryogenic electron microscopy. As part of this project, I got to film at eBIC (the Electron Biology Imaging Centre at Diamond Light Source). It was really cool to see the electron microscopes up close, and to talk to the people who work there!
“Over the course of my placement, I also made a variety of LinkedIn posts and articles. I really loved the process of talking to different people about their work, and I learnt about so many fascinating projects: from fluidised tungsten targets to AI analysis of X-ray images. Overall, these posts received over 20,000 impressions – it was rewarding to see the impact of my work through the analytics.
“Beyond this, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed being at RAL: I came here for work experience during secondary school, and I always wanted to come back. It’s such an inspiring place to work, and everyone is so friendly and welcoming – I’d highly recommend this opportunity to anyone who’s considering it!”
Detector Development Group
Ben, a final year student studying towards an MPhys at the University of St Andrews, and Holly, a third year Physics student at the University of Lincoln, also studying towards a MPhys, completed detector science summer placements.
When asked about his experience, Ben shared:
“This summer I spent 12 weeks in the Detectors and Electronics Division at RAL, working on DynamiX, a prototype X-ray imaging ASIC for synchrotron beamlines, and its successor, XIDyn. My work revolved around characterising and calibrating the small prototype DynamiX system, essentially making sure each of its pixels gives the same answer when it sees the same X-rays. This gave me the chance to develop a wide range of skills, including hands-on lab work, building Python analysis pipelines and comparing calibration methods to understand differences between pixels.
“There’s a huge amount to be learned on the job that textbooks struggle to convey, which I found really rewarding. Beyond my own project, there’s so much going on across the campus. Everyone is working on something interesting and is happy to talk about it. My team were welcoming and generous with their time, and I’d definitely recommend a placement to anyone considering one.”
The small prototype DynamiX system: a block of cadmium zinc telluride bump-bonded to the Baby D ASIC, mounted on its test board.
Holly added:
“I worked on HEXITEC, a high-energy X-ray detector developed and manufactured here. HEXITEC is a pixelated detector, but when an X-ray hits near the boundary between pixels, its energy can be split across two or more of them, so one event is counted as several smaller ones. These “charge sharing” events make up around half of all events. Most applications simply discard them (charge sharing discrimination), but this greatly reduces counting efficiency. The alternative is charge sharing addition (CSA), which recombines the split energy into a single event.
“I built a pipeline to compare different CSA methods. I also got an insight into how HEXITEC is produced, including shadowing in the cleanroom and calibrating the modules with radioactive sources. Beyond my project, I got to see some of the other science on site, such as Diamond Light Source and RAL Space. It’s been a fascinating summer, and I’d love to return in the future!”
Electronic System Design Group
Kai and Aadith, both third-year engineering students from the University of Cambridge, successfully completed placements supporting our delivery of high-quality FPGA firmware for scientific research.
Reflecting on his placement, Kai shared:
“My summer placement was a fantastic opportunity to experience how digital and FPGA engineering is carried out in a professional research environment. Working with the Electronic System Design Group, I was able to contribute to real engineering projects involving FPGA development, verification and testing, while learning a huge amount from experienced engineers around me. The placement has strengthened my interest in digital hardware and given me skills and experience that I’ll take forward into my studies and future career.”
Aadith added:
“I’ve had a very enjoyable 12 weeks with the ESDG. I was given a clearly defined and ambitious project, alongside a dedicated mentor, which gave me a sense of ownership while helping me manage my progress throughout the placement. Overall, it was a really positive experience and a great environment to learn and contribute in, and I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone considering interning at STFC!”
Written by Jessica Yu, Ben Houston, Holly Upsall, Aadith Chandra, and Kai Nguyen.
