Postdoctoral Researcher - Specialty Alloys and Chemical Metallurgy, Onsite

Postdoctoral Researcher - Specialty Alloys and Chemical Metallurgy, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting‑edge work in a broad array of areas.

What Your Job Will Be Like:

Sandia National Laboratories seeks a Postdoctoral Researcher to join our Metallurgy Engineering Department. The successful candidate will apply core principles of chemical metallurgy to develop manufacturing methods for specialty alloys with advanced magnetic, electronic, and physical properties. The work will be fast‑paced, exploring novel alloy melt architectures and designing and building custom liquid metal processing capabilities. The application space will span defense, aerospace, and thermal management, and you will work in collaboration with a large multidisciplinary team at Sandia as well as external industry partners.

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Investigate processing microstructure property relationships in specialty alloy systems (ferrous, titanium, refractory)
• Design high‑temperature experiments (casting, thermodynamic and physicochemical property measurements, alloying and refining)
• Develop and implement analytical theory in thermodynamics and electronic structure calculations to rationalize data
• Leverage theoretical developments grounded in experimentation to conduct high‑temperature melt process design
• Interact with researchers, technicians, and students to shape and drive the research agenda
• Present results at internal reviews and national/international conferences; publish in peer reviewed journals on schedule
• Ensure compliance with Sandia's environment, safety, health, and quality program requirements
• Demonstrate and promote Sandia's core values, Excellence and Integrity, and foster a respectful, inclusive workplace

Due to the nature of the work, the selected candidate must be able to work onsite.

• PhD in Materials Science & Engineering, Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, or a related discipline completed within the last five years
• Strong foundation in chemical metallurgy
• A strong publication record in peer reviewed journals demonstrating creative and productive research
• Ability to acquire and maintain a DOE Q‑level security clearance

• Hands‑on experience with specialty metals, including casting or refining methods and melt state processing
• Design and use of custom liquid metal alloying and casting equipment
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Self‑motivated, able to work independently and creatively in collaborative, fast paced teams
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks and adapt to evolving project needs

The Metallurgy and Welding Engineering Department is the principal organization for metallurgy research and development throughout Sandia. Our expertise covers a broad range of experimental and predictive capabilities that apply fundamental process as well as applied physical and mechanical metallurgy principles. Specific technical areas include laser welding, failure analysis, mechanical testing, physical metallurgy, and others. Our scientific focus is on materials structures, properties, performance and reliability.

We support an extensive variety of national security programs and we are highly engaged in providing collaborative, innovative materials science and systems‑based engineering solutions.

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre‑employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q‑level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified…