In a few months, Michaela Hošková is heading to Sweden for her doctoral studies. The local Chalmers University of Technology selected her as one of two successful candidates for the prestigious "Excellence PhD Position" in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology. She will research the Casimir effect, which is a direct measurable manifestation of quantum physics. However, her path to success was by no means straightforward.

"I knew I had no chance. But at the same time, I felt that I would regret it if I didn't at least try," says the student in the Master's program in Physical Engineering and Nanotechnology at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the Brno University of Technology. In September, she will be a PhD student at the renowned Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. Due to the traditionally high number and level of applicants, she applied for the Excellence PhD program without much hope, but she was tempted to try what such a procedure looks like. After preparing an extensive portfolio and a detailed proposal for the planned research, Michaela was invited for an interview as one of the few applicants. To the amazement of the members of the research group at Chalmers and colleagues from her home Institute of Physical Engineering at BUT, she managed to impress the committee so much that she was accepted for one of the two open positions in the program.

She is returning to the university where she completed her Erasmus stay. It was there that she got into research on the Casimir effect, which appealed to her so much that she applied for a prestigious PhD program with a project to continue her research. "The Casimir effect is a direct, measurable manifestation of quantum physics. What I like about the topic is that it allows me to combine pure research and the study of quantum physics with possible applications in nanotechnology. I originally studied mechanical engineering at BUT, but only then did I switch to physics. That's why I like to combine both," says Hošková.

Generally, the Casimir effect is perceived as an undesirable phenomenon. Michaela Hošková would like to change this and during her PhD study, she plans to look for applications where the phenomenon would be found beneficial. "The Casimir effect is still very much unexplored, especially in the experimental field, there are still several questions. This is also because the scientific community focusing on this topic is made up mainly of theoreticians and there are few experimenters, and also because this effect is extremely difficult to measure and analyze," she explains.

At Chalmers, she should find an ideal base for her work. "There is a research group that deals directly with this area of physics. I also really like how science is lived there, everyone talks about it, and scientists from all over the world come there. In my six months on Erasmus alone, I experienced lectures by four Nobel Prize laureates, which is extremely inspiring," Michaela says. And not only the university but also the Swedish mentality and lifestyle suited her.

It was during her first interview regarding her Erasmus stay, that she was informed about the possibility of applying for a grant for doctoral studies at Chalmers. Nevertheless, it was mentioned somehow unwittingly and with the addition that the chances of success are minimal. "I remember that moment exactly. That's when I decided I wanted to try it anyway. Even though I was expecting only to learn something extra and experience rejection, I was sure I wanted to try. It was clear to me that everyone who applied there was an excellent scientist and liked physics. And you have to think about how to stand out in such a crowd and how to differentiate yourself," Hošková recalls.

She started preparations more than a year in advance. She had to have excellent grades at university, a sophisticated portfolio and, most importantly, a project proposal that she would like to devote herself to for the next five years. When the invitation for an interview came, she decided to decline the online option and went to Sweden in person. She wanted to make the most of her twenty minutes when she had a chance to impress the committee. "There were even very personal questions. One of them was whether I was ready to be seen. A person in this position also accepts the responsibility of being an inspiration to younger generations of students. It doesn't end with you getting a job, on the contrary, it's just the beginning," says Hošková. Perhaps it also helped that she has been tutoring mathematics and physics for a long time. "One of the conditions of the PhD position at Chalmers is that one will also teach at the faculty. For me, the opportunity to help younger students find joy in science is a huge fun and inspiration, and I tried to pass that on during the interview," she adds.

He says he is not afraid of the unknown. "As an experimenter in physics, I know that a lot can go wrong. Science is more like ninety per cent failure, but it's important how you react to it and whether you get discouraged," Hošková believes. After all, that's exactly what had happened to her during her previous internship: she worked for three months on a project that was eventually cancelled. "It turned out that it just did not work from a physics point of view. Well, instead of giving up, I went to the laboratories to measure other experiments, because I enjoy it and I took it as entertainment. At that time, I managed to measure the Casimir effect in one particular way. It was a great coincidence – but a big step into the future," Michaela concludes.