Empa is the research institute for materials science and technology of the ETH Domain and conducts cutting-edge research for the benefit of industry and the well-being of society.
Our Laboratory for Mechanics of Materials and Nanostructures in Thun, Switzerland, is looking for an Early Stage Researcher in the field of analysis of material responses to energy beams to work on a European funded project in the area of energy beam processing.
The successful candidate will be employed for 10 months at Empa within the Marie Curie Initial Training Network (ITN): A Synergetic Training Network on Energy beam Processing: from Modelling to Industrial Applications – STEEP (http://www.steep-itn.eu/) – co-ordinated by the University of Nottingham in the UK.
Description
The project aims to build a database of various material responses for energy beam processing. STEEP focuses on two groups of advanced materials to enable comparison between the scaling and phenomenological effects of EB processing. Therefore, to make widely valuable models/simulations, a database with various material responses to energy beams is needed. This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to the development of a unified STEEP modelling platform of the footprints as a result of energy beams (waterjet, laser, ion beam) – workpiece interactions. The ESR will study the responses of three categories of materials; metallic, ceramic and organic. The results will be crucial to further validation of the unified software models in the network. The ESR will receive training on relevant material laboratory inspection (SEM, TEM, EDX and XRD) and on material testing (e.g. in-situ point impact, pillar compression) at Empa. This will be complemented by training in all three EB processes (waterjet, laser and FIB) at the University of Nottingham and University of Birmingham in the UK and Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nürnberg in Germany, so that the ESR will be able to understand the phenomenological aspects of the process and characterise the removal process for the new set of workpiece materials.
The overall aim of STEEP is to establish a transnational research training platform for the formation and career development of young researchers on energy beam processing methods, which represent a scientific field of critical importance for the further advancement of high value-added manufacturing industry in Europe. Hence, the selected candidate will be able to develop multidisciplinary knowledge such as analytical skills related to energy beam processes, modelling and software development making him or her highly employable by knowledge-intensive companies/institutes.
The ESR will have the opportunity to undertake placements (equivalent to 1 month/year) at industrial/research /academic institutions related to topics of their research within the EU. Candidates must be in the first 4 years of their research careers and not yet been awarded a doctorate degree. Preference will be given to candidates with experience in material sciences, physics and engineering backgrounds. Applicants must not have resided, worked or studied in Switzerland for more than 12 months in the 3 years prior to the application date. This full-time post is available upon mutual agreement and will be offered on a fixed-term contract for a period of 10 months. For successful candidates, proficiency in English, both written and spoken, is essential while knowledge of German and/or French would be advantageous.
Nr of positions available : 1
Research Fields
Engineering - Materials Engineering
Career Stage
Early stage researcher or 0-4 yrs (Post graduate)
Research Profiles
First Stage Researcher (R1)
Comment/web site for additional job details
Additional information can be obtained by contacting Dr. Johann Michler johann.michler@empa.ch by email. Interested applicants should submit a written application including a motivation letter, CV and diploma.
Please submit your application online and upload all documents ("pdf"-file is recommended) through this webpage:
apply.refline.ch/673276/0555/pub/1/index.html
Any other way of applying will not be considered.