Sample cover letter for Internship position at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy

Dear whom it may concern,

As a 3^rd year MPhys student at ..., I’m looking to work on a physical scientific research project, spanning between 4 and 6 months, and starting from summer 2015.

Put simply, Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) appeals to me because of its large amount of experimental research using plasma physics. Recently, Imperial College London have been involved in ‘Laboratory Astrophysics’, researching astrophysical scaling with plasma-jet experiments that can be likened to protostellar plasma jets in space. As a person who hopes one day to work in astrophysics and space-physics, experimenting with plasma at CCFE in a way that contributes to my degree would personally be one of the most successful things I could achieve on a Masters Placement.

In a broader sense, I like the fact that fusion technology isn’t just a scientific problem, but environmental, economic and political; the upshot is “What will replace fossil fuels?” It’s an important issue for science to be tackling, and it’s a reason I’d like to learn about the physics surrounding fusion technology.

Research at CCFE relevant to some of my current experience is “Studies of the materials and technology needed in ITER and fusion power stations”. While I was working at the Advanced Technology Centre (ATC) for BAE Systems last year, I experimented on the electrical and thermal integrity of selected Radar Absorbent Materials (RAMs), to ascertain the most suitable material for an external customer. In this case, the thermal and electrical degradation power limit of the material, when irradiated with high powers, was the objective. A process was devised (by myself and an experienced contractor) to measure the initial rate of temperature change of each material under a variable incident power; this data was then extrapolated to determine the safe incident power limit for each material, leading one to be successfully chosen. I imagine similar processes are at work at CCFE, and it would be great to research materials surrounding plasma physics, and contribute to something as large as the ITER project.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter; if you are interested in discussing a research placement at CCFE further, please get in touch using the details in my CV. I hope to hear from you soon.

Yours faithfully,

...