Postdoctoral Researcher – Development of Thin Film Nitride Materials

Postdoctoral Researcher – Development of Thin Film Nitride Materials

Location:

CO - Golden. Position Type:
Postdoc (Fixed Term). Hours Per Week: 40. Working at NLR – the National Laboratory of the Rockies.

NLR is located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado, and is the nation’s primary laboratory for energy systems research and development. Join the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), where world‑class scientists, engineers, and experts accelerate energy innovation through breakthrough research and systems integration. From our mission to our collaborative culture, NLR stands out in the research community for its commitment to an affordable and secure energy future.

Spanning foundational science to applied systems engineering and analysis, we focus on solving complex challenges to deliver advanced, secure, reliable, and cost‑effective energy solutions. Our work helps strengthen U.S. industries, support job creation, and promote national economic growth. At NLR, you’ll find a mission‑driven environment supported by state‑of‑the‑art facilities, multidisciplinary research teams, and strong collaborations with industry, academia, and other national laboratories.

We offer robust professional development opportunities and a competitive benefits package designed to support your career and well‑being.

An experimental postdoctoral research position is available in NLR’s Materials Discovery and Development group. The position is focused on thin film synthesis and characterization of nitride materials by physical vapor deposition (sputtering). The position would support several collaborative basic science and applied development projects exploring emerging nitride thin films for applications including semiconductors, ultrawide bandgap semiconductors, piezo/ferroelectric materials and radiation detectors.

One of the projects that this position would support is NLR’s next‑generation autonomous semiconductor development suite, created as part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s METALLIC platform. Through METALLIC, NLR aims to accelerate the discovery of advanced thin film inorganic semiconductor materials to address critical U.S. supply chain challenges, with particular emphasis on semiconductor technologies involving Ga, Ge, Sc and other critical elements and materials.

This position will focus on the development of sputter deposition processes and characterization workflows using this autonomous semiconductor suite. Other projects that would be supported by this position focus on the design, development and testing of novel ultrawide bandgap nitride materials for radiation detection and piezoelectric/ferroelectric devices. As a part of both projects, the successful candidate will design and perform thin film synthesis and characterization experiments, collaborate with other scientists and engineers at NLR and at partner institutions, and disseminate results in the form of conference presentations and scientific publications.

The job duties would also include setting up and maintaining existing experimental equipment and improving/creating data collection and analysis tools.

• Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.
• Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

• Prior hands‑on experience with vacuum‑based synthesis of functional thin film materials, using physical vapor deposition, such as reactive sputtering, pulsed laser deposition, or molecular beam epitaxy.
• Hands‑on experience with in‑depth knowledge of one or several materials characterization methods, such as x‑ray diffraction/scattering, optoelectronic measurements (photoluminescence, Raman, transport), electrical characterization (piezo‑ or ferroelectric characterization, etc.).
• Strong knowledge of inorganic thin films and semiconductor materials, particularly oxides, nitrides, wide band gap semiconductors, dielectrics, piezoelectrics/ferroelectrics, or related material systems.
• Established track record in scientific writing, presentation, publishing, and communication.

• Proven ability to maintain…