Multiple Opportunities for Post-Doctoral Associates, FIRST Energy Frontier Research Center.
The Fluid Interface Reactions, Structures and Transport (FIRST) Center has been established at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences. ORNL’s institutional partners include Argonne National Laboratory, Vanderbilt, Drexel and Northwestern Universities, and the University of Virginia. The goal of the FIRST Center is to develop transformative conceptual and quantitative atomic-molecular models of the unique nanoscale environment at the interface between dense fluids and solid substrates encountered in advanced electrical energy storage (batteries, superconductors) and energy-related catalytic (water oxidation/reduction, CO2 reduction, etc.) systems. Our multidisciplinary team will integrate neutron and X-ray scattering, advanced spectroscopies and microscopies, macroscopic experiments and multi-scale molecular modeling to gain a fundamental understanding of such systems and for performance prediction and design of next generation energy technologies.
The FIRST Center has multiple opportunities for post-doctoral associates. We are currently seeking candidates in the following areas:
1. Synthesis, characterization and fundamental interactions of carbon substrates with aqueous, ionic liquid and other electrolytes in batteries and supercapacitors, as well as fluid-phase chemical reactions at carbon substrates.
2. Experimental characterization, electrochemical and spectroscopic studies of coupled proton-electron transfer reactions in aqueous fluids at carbon and metal oxide surfaces with and without catalysts.
3. Solid state and fluid phase NMR investigations of fluid/solid interaction dynamics and bonding.
4. Scanning Probe Microscopies applied to the systems described above.
5. Inelastic neutron scattering to probe solvent/solute/substrate interaction dynamics and energetics at ORNL’s Spallation Neutron Source.
6. Synchrotron X-ray studies of interfacial fluid and substrate structures
7. Application of static and dynamic ab initio computational studies of fluid/solid interactions.
8. Large scale classical molecular dynamics simulations and multiscale model development.
We seek candidates with a Ph.D. or equivalent in the physical, mathematical or computational sciences who possess excellent communication skills and the ability to speak and write clearly in English. However, candidates will be encouraged and expected to cross traditional disciplinary lines in the course of their FIRST Center research efforts. Appointments will be for one year, provisionally renewable for up to three years. Follow the link below to find more details and application instructions for the ORNL FIRST Postdoctoral Fellows positions. Additional postdoctoral positions at our partner institutions are listed below.
ORNL FIRST Postdoctoral Fellowships
-
Postdoctoral Research Associate in
Neutron Diffraction and Small Angle Scattering Studies
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge, TN
Project Description:The Chemical Sciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is soliciting applications for a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Neutron diffraction and small angle scattering studies of electrolyte (aqueous, organic, ionic liquid) bulk behavior, interactions with electrode materials, and response to external fields.
The research will involve structural investigations, primarily by neutron diffraction, of the atomic to nano-scale structures formed in ionic liquids, aqueous and organic electrolytes. In addition to resolving the bulk structures, our interest is in understanding their structure in micro- and nano-porous carbon, as well as the influence of electric fields. The candidate will investigate structures in the electric double layer (EDL) formed at charged surfaces, mimicking electrode processes in advanced battery and capacitor systems. He/she will work closely with other experimental and computational members of the FIRST team. The expected outcome of this research is an improved understanding of the electrolyte structure in bulk and in the EDL and its variations with electrolyte composition and external parameters. See Full Description
