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Current Openings

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Physics Frontiers Center for Matter at Atomic Pressure (CMAP), a multi-institutional enterprise anchored at the University of Rochester, invites applications for the following positions.

CMAP Fellows

Post-doctoral fellowship

A post-doctoral position at the University of Rochester is open to candidates with research interests and experience in:

New opening in Computational/Theoretical Planet Modeling
View job description

• High-energy-density physics
• Materials science
• Quantum matter
• Extreme chemistry
• Physics
• Astrophysics
• Planetary science
• Earth and environmental sciences
• Related disciplines

Required application materials include your CV, a statement of research interests, and three letters of recommendation.

Email your application materials

Graduate fellowships

Multiple graduate-level positions at the University of Rochester are open to candidates with research interests and experience in:

• High-energy-density physics
• Materials science
• Quantum matter
• Extreme chemistry
• Physics
• Astrophysics
• Planetary science
• Earth and environmental sciences
• Related disciplines

Required application materials include your CV, a statement of research interests, and three letters of recommendation.

Email your application materials

All of the above-listed positions at the University of Rochester are part of the larger CMAP NSF Physics Frontiers Center, a collaboration among the University of Rochester, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, University at Buffalo, University of California–Berkeley, University of California–Davis, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Participating team members communicate weekly.

Positions may be available for multiple years, depending on performance.

Post-doctoral and graduate fellows
Email your application materials

The University of Rochester is an Equal Opportunity Employer, has a strong commitment to diversity, and actively encourages applications from candidates from groups underrepresented in higher education. All applications are considered without regard to race, sex, age, religion or national origin.

Join the CMAP team

Apply Today

Please send all required application materials—a CV, a statement of research interests, and three letters of recommendation—via email to Natalie Antal, research and operations administrator for CMAP. Review of applications is ongoing until successful candidates are chosen.

Contact us today

External Opportunities

Listed by post date, these are positions related to CMAP science at other universities and organizations. Click the + icons to view details.

Please note: the posting of job opportunities on this website does not indicate an endorsement or recommendation from the University of Rochester, Center for Matter at Atomic Pressures, and National Science Foundation. The University of Rochester makes no representations or guarantees about positions posted. Applicants are responsible for all necessary precautions when applying for, interviewing for, or accepting these positions, and users are responsible for checking the credentials and integrity of the employer. Further, the University of Rochester, Center for Matter at Atomic Pressures, and National Science Foundation are not responsible for safety, wages, working conditions, or other aspects of off-campus opportunities.

Description
We are searching for a Ph.D. student working on dynamic compression experiments of light C:H:N:O mixtures at extreme conditions. During this Ph.D. project, the candidate will perform experiments on the most powerful lasers and XFEL facilities worldwide accessing unique data sets that he/she will collect and analyze. The student will be based at the LULI laboratory, near Paros, but he/she will work in close collaboration with the German partner. He/She will profit from a fruitful environment benefiting from interactions and exchanges within both the French and German teams. Experiments will also be intermixed with discussion sessions on collected data with relevant experts from the ab-initio and planetary model communities.

In the last years, the PHYHDEL group at the LULI laboratory at the Ecole Polytechnique in France started a scientific program focused on the characterization of the properties of CHNO
mixtures under high pressure and temperature conditions obtained with laser-generated shock compression. This Ph.D. thesis will build on the results previously obtained and enlarge their scope by leveraging on unique possibilities offered by high-power optical lasers and X-Ray Free Electron Lasers (XFEL) facilities based in Germany (European XFEL), USA (LCLS) and Japan (SACLA). In this project the student will perform experiments to benchmark equations of state, melting curves, and transport properties for new mixtures and over unexplored thermodynamic conditions. In particular, the candidate work will include water-ammonia mixtures with different concentrations, CH4, and various CHNO mixtures. In parallel, he/she will complement these results with microscopic data obtainable with X-ray diagnostics. The student will work on adapting the liquid samples of different ice mixtures to X-ray diagnostics implemented at current XFEL facilities. Direct characterization of super-ionic lattices, phase separation or polymerization will be obtained using x-ray diffraction, X-ray Thomson scattering, and Small Angle Scattering diagnostics. The use of liquid samples gives enough freedom in changing H2O/N/C stoichiometry so that N-H-O, C-H-O, and more comprehensive C-H-N-O environments will be accessible.

Contact
Alessandra Ravasio: alessandra.ravasio@polytechnique.edu

Description
We have an open post-doc position for the high-pressure activity at the XAS beamlines ID24 /BM23 of the ESRF. We are looking for a motivated candidate familiar with extreme condition studies who is interested to exploit the unique capabilities of our new instruments and the ESRFEBS source for their own research and to provide support to our users. These beamlines offer among other setups, unique microbeam stations (beam spot size down to 0.7 μm) and experimental setups fully optimized for extreme conditions studies at high pressure (resistively and laser-heated DAC, cryogenically cooled DAC, Paris-Edinburgh-Press). We welcome applicants with a Ph.D. in chemistry, solid-state physics, materials science, Earth science, or similar.

Website:
https://esrf.gestmax.eu/1640/1/postdoctoral-fellow-in-high-pressure-at-the-id24-and-bm23-xafs-beamlines/en_US

Contact
Olivier Mathon: mathon@esrf.fr
Angelika Rosa: arosa@esrf.fr

Description
I would like to bring your attention to a 1 + 1 years’ post-doctoral position to be opened at the Extreme Conditions lab, University of Valencia, Spain. The project concerns the experimental study of the phase relations in carbonates and the adsorption of CO2 in silica zeolites at high-pressure high-temperature conditions (see abstract below). This involves the use of diamond anvil cells, laser and resistive heating, Raman and IR spectroscopies, and synchrotron x-ray diffraction techniques. We are looking for a highly motivated candidate able to perform x-ray diffraction and spectroscopic (Raman and IR) measurements including data collection for minerals under pressure (and high temperature) and data analyses. The starting date will be June 2023.

The goal of our project is aimed at (i) the determination of phase relations in carbonates at geotherm conditions and (ii) the study of carbonation and carbon reduction processes at high pressures and temperatures, which will provide CO2 chemical reactivity constraints. This project is a joint experimental and theoretical effort that will shed light on the carbonation processes, map out the pressure-temperature-composition phase diagrams and search for novel dense carbonate materials. For this purpose, we will use cutting-edge techniques such as high-vacuum external resistive-heated and laser-heated diamond-anvil cells together with concurrent in situ characterization techniques, in both synchrotron and in-home facilities. Theoretical simulations will complement and delve into the nature of experimental observations.

Candidate Requested Skills

  • Crystallography, mineralogy, chemistry, physics, or any related fields
  • Demonstrated expertise in high pressure data collection
    Knowledge of crystallography and experience in conducting, evaluating, and reporting research in X-ray structural analysis
  • Good knowledge of written and spoken English, written and spoken presentation skills
  • Ability to work independently and within a team
  • Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Practical knowledge of writing scientific texts
  • Practical knowledge of mineralogy and phase transitions in minerals
  • Practical experience in synchrotron facilities

Research Group Websites:
https://extreme-carbonates.github.io/
https://www.researchgate.net/project/Exploring-the-formation-of-novel-carbonate-structures-at-extreme-P-T-conditions

Contact
David Santamaría-Pérez: David.Santamaria@uv.es

Description
We have new job openings for both graduate students and postdocs and are seeking to hire as soon as possible. Please contact me at the email below if you are interested or have any questions. Salary and benefits information is available online. Both jobs have significant flexibility in the type of work involved. The Materials and Physical Data group (XCP-5) in the Computational Physics Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate (Graduate Research Assistant) to work in the general area of computational materials science, which will involve performing quantum mechanical (density functional theory (DFT)) calculations of various materials. The position will involve applications of DFT for a range of application areas, including calculations of spectroscopic signatures of
materials, DFT-based molecular dynamics calculations, and calculations relevant for materials equations of state (EOS). The position can also include a component related to DFT code development, depending on the interest level of the applicant. Interested candidates should have a background in quantum mechanics and have experience coding in Python, Matlab, C/C++, Fortran, or a related programming language.

Graduate Student ST 1: Learn more

Postdoctoral Research Associate: Learn more

Contact
Danny Rehn: rehnd@lanl.gov
505-667-0687

Description
We have an opening for a Postdoctoral Researcher in the field of fundamental and applied research in experimental high-pressure science. The applicant should have a background in physics, materials science, or chemistry at extreme conditions with an emphasis on static high pressure. The postdoc will perform tabletop experiments at Universidad de Valencia as well as experiments conducted at synchrotron sources. The research will focus on understanding the physics of materials at ultra-high static pressure, using diamond-anvil cells. Experience in laser-heating techniques is recommended but not mandatory. The position is for 1 + 1 years, with possible extensions depending on funds availability and research performance. The postdoctoral researcher will be expected to work collaboratively with scientists in the High-Pressure Group at Universidad de Valencia and other groups from the MALTA consolider team.

Starting Date

Preferable March 2023

Contact
Prof. Daniel Errandonea: daniel.errandonea@uv.es

Description
I am looking for 1 postdoc and 1 Ph.D. student in two challenging projects regarding:

(1) High-pressure structure and dynamics of natural gas hydrates

(2) High-pressure proton-dynamics and conductivity properties of salt-doped ices

Both positions are granted by the SNF (Swiss Funding Agency) and are based at EPFL, Lausanne, with intense activity on both neutron scattering facilities and synchrotrons. EPFL is a world top-class university offering excellent research infrastructures and resources, a stimulating international research environment, a competitive salary, and an ideal starting point for a scientific career.

Contact
Livia Bove: livia.bove@epfl.ch

Description
LSPM invites applications for a research engineer position, presently as a 1-year contract with the potential to be transformed into a permanent position.

Website
https://www.lspm.cnrs.fr/en/research-engineer_x-ray-diffraction_lspm/

Description
The Carnegie Institute of Science’s Earth and Planets Laboratory (EPL) is seeking a Postdoctoral Fellow to study the high-pressure-temperature behavior of planetary core materials, specifically the ultrahigh-PT phase stability and melting in the iron-carbon system. The project will focus on the high-pressure-temperature structure and phase stability of the iron-carbon system, with applications to understanding the behavior of materials under extreme conditions and their implications for the interiors of Earth and exoplanets. The project will involve using high-powered lasers to dynamically compress materials to the extreme pressure and temperature conditions of planetary cores, collecting diffraction and laser interferometry data. The candidate will be responsible for designing and conducting experiments at National User Facilities and analyzing experimental data. As part of our commitment to building a diverse and inclusive community, we encourage applicants from underrepresented groups and backgrounds and applicants with non-traditional career paths. The Carnegie Institution is an equal-opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of gender, race/ethnicity, protected veteran status, disability, or another protected group status.

Qualifications
● Ph.D. in Geosciences, Physics, Materials Science, or a related field.
● Strong hands-on experimental skills and ability to work independently and collaboratively in a group environment.
● Expertise with high-pressure experiments, whether dynamic or static.

Application Materials Required
● Cover Letter
● Curriculum Vitae (including publications)
● Statement of research interests, and the contact information of three references.

The initial appointment is for one year, with the possibility of an additional year pending progress and availability of funds. The position is expected to be available starting Fall 2022 and will remain open until filled.

Website
https://jobs.carnegiescience.edu/jobs/postdoctoral-fellow-7/

Contact
Sally Tracy: sjtracy@carnegiescience.edu

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