Postdoctoral Researcher – Battery and Critical Minerals​/Materials R&D Research

Posting Title Postdoctoral Researcher – Battery and Critical Minerals/Materials R&D Research.

Location CO - Golden.

Position Type Postdoc (Fixed Term).Hours Per Week
40.Working at NLRNLR is located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado 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 are accelerating 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.

Job Description NLR's Battery Materials Group develops materials for battery applications and other critical mineral and material technologies. The Group has an opening for one or more postdoctoral researchers.

This position will support hands-on materials science research and development with a focus on lab work to support lithium-ion-battery materials development projects and critical mineral/material separation and electrochemical processing projects. The technologies of interest include conventional lithium-ion materials and next-generation battery technologies as well as electrochemical deposition for critical materials processing.

The successful candidate will perform some of the following tasks: design experiments and experimental matrices; synthesize, process, and/or coat battery materials; perform in-situ and ex-situ materials characterization; fabricate electrodes; fabricate electrochemical cells; perform electrochemical testing; separate critical materials; deposit critical materials electrochemically; analyze electrochemical and materials characterization data from experiments; and work with project task leads to write papers and reports..Basic

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

Additional

Required Qualifications

PhD in engineering, chemistry, materials science, or physics

Experience fabricating and testing electrochemical cells

Experience conducting materials characterization for critical minerals/materials or battery materials

Experience synthesizing, depositing, separating, or processing critical minerals/materials or battery materials

Demonstrated ability to work independently

Demonstrated ability to process, plot, and interpret electrochemical data Excellent interpersonal, communication, and writing skills

Demonstrated teamwork, creativity, innovation, and adaptability

Ability to attend and present research to the scientific community

Preferred Qualifications Python, MATLAB, Igor Pro, or other coding expertise for developing data analysis and processing tools

Experience synthesizing or processing battery electrode materials

Experience fabricating battery coin or pouch cells

Experience conducting battery-specific materials characterization

Experience fabricating battery electrodes

Experience with electrochemical deposition

Experience with critical mineral/materials processing

Experience synthesizing and testing solid-state electrolytes

Experience with water-in-salt, high-concentration, or hydrate-melt electrolytes

Experience with advanced lithium-ion battery materials such as silicon, or advanced cathodes such as LMFP, low Co materials like LMR, DRX, etc.

Experience with next generation battery materials development, such as Na-ion, Sulfur, or other conversion cathodes

Experience with designing or testing batteries for non-traditional applications (high power, ultra-safe, fast charge, low temp, etc.)Experience working on outside-of-the-box cell designs such as in-situ cells or advanced components like light-weight current collectors and advanced separators to improve safety or performance

Expertise in analytical…