Funding

Self-funded

Project code

MAP10630529

Department

School of Computing, Mathematics and Physics

Start dates

February and October

Application deadline

Applications accepted all year round

Applications are invited for a self-funded, 3 year full-time or 6 year part-time PhD project. 

The PhD will be based in the School of Computing, Mathematics and Physics and will be supervised by Dr Melvin Vopson and Dr Sergi Simon.

 

The work on this project will:

  • Expand fundamental research and information theoretic approaches into digital securities applications.
  • Develop functional prototyping software using this technology.
  • Test the technology on real data.

Optically readable barcodes and QR codes are an essential tool in our modern society.

These barcodes are randomly generated and associated with an item by simple allocation. If a given barcode is re-allocated to another item, the recorded details within the barcode will no longer represent the characteristics of the new item. When barcoding is applied to sensitive items, such as genetic sequences or financial assets, this becomes a security and privacy problem. A solution is the Entropic Barcoding technology developed by the Information Physics Institute and the University of Portsmouth [1]. This method allows for the creation of Entropic barcodes that are permanently linked to the item they represent. The Entropic barcodes are therefore not transferable. Any changes to the underlying sequence will generally produce changes in the corresponding Entropic barcode, making the representation sensitive to variation. This has recently been applied to blockchains to create an improved blockchain technology called Entropic Blockchain [2].

The proposed technology uses the concept of entropy of data in the framework of Shannon’s information theory to transform any data set (including digital) by simultaneously compressing its digital footprint size, irreversibly encrypting and labelling the data, while also facilitating a unique methodology for data integrity checking, data validation, fraud detection and fast identification via laser barcode scanning. The technology could be used to generate Entropic Barcodes of any kind of dataset, including genomic sequences and digital data files.

In this PhD project, the main objective is to expand the fundamental research into digital securities application domain, and to develop prototyping software applications based on the proposed technology. 

 

[1] M.M Vopson, S. Lepadatu,A. Vopson, S. Lukaszyk, Next-Generation Blockchain Technology: The Entropic Blockchain. Appl. Sci. (2024), 14, 6297.

[2] M.M. Vopson, S. Lukaszyk, A. Vopson, The Entropic Barcoding Technology, Patent Application Number: GB2404348.1, 26 March (2024).

 

Entry Requirements

You'll need a good first degree from an internationally recognised university (minimum upper second class or equivalent, depending on your chosen course) or a master’s degree in an appropriate subject. In exceptional cases, we may consider equivalent professional experience and/or qualifications. 

English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.5 with no component score below 6.0.

International students will require a study visa from UKVI to pursue the degree in the UK. If the research is in a sensitive or technological subject, the student may also need to secure an Academic Technology Approval Scheme (ATAS) certificate from the UK Foreign Office.

Recommended background knowledge and modules: Statistics, Information Theory, Theoretical Physics, Programming / coding intensive. 

Additional skills to be acquired during the project: Advanced theoretical understanding of Information Theory and its applications to digital technologies. 

 

 

How to apply

We’d encourage you to contact Dr Melvin Vopson ([email protected]) to discuss your interest before you apply, quoting the project code.

When you are ready to apply, please follow the 'Apply now' link on the Mathematics PhD subject area page and select the link for the relevant intake.. Make sure you submit a personal statement, proof of your degrees and grades, details of two referees, proof of your English language proficiency and an up-to-date CV.  Our ‘How to Apply’ page offers further guidance on the PhD application process.
 

When applying please quote project code MAP10630529.