Research Scientist; Polymer Synthesis, term

Staff Research Scientist (Polymer Synthesis, term 2-year)  Join to apply for the  Staff Research Scientist (Polymer Synthesis, term 2-year)  role at  University of Toronto
Staff Research Scientist (Polymer Synthesis, term 2-year)  Join to apply for the  Staff Research Scientist (Polymer Synthesis, term 2-year)  role at  University of Toronto
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Faculty/Division:  Faculty of Arts & Science
Department:  Acceleration Consortium
Campus:  St. George (Downtown Toronto)

Description:

The Acceleration Consortium (AC) at the University of Toronto (U of T) is leading a transformative shift in scientific discovery that will accelerate technology development and commercialization. The AC is a global community of academia, industry, and government that leverages the power of artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, materials sciences, and high-throughput chemistry to create self-driving laboratories (SDLs), also called materials acceleration platforms (MAPs).

These autonomous labs rapidly design materials and molecules needed for a sustainable, healthy, and resilient future, with applications ranging from renewable energy and consumer electronics to drugs. AC Staff Research Scientists will advance the field of AI-driven autonomous discovery and develop the materials and molecules required to address society’s largest challenges, such as climate change, water pollution, and future pandemics.
The Acceleration Consortium (AC) promotes an inclusive research environment and supports the EDI priorities of the unit.
Hiring is occurring on a rolling intake. Please apply ASAP and do not wait for the listed job closing date.
The Acceleration Consortium received a  $200M Canadian First Research Excellence Grant f or seven years to develop self-driving labs for chemistry and materials, the largest ever grant to a Canadian University. This grant will provide the Acceleration Consortium with seven years of funding to execute its vision
The AC is developing seven advanced SDLs plus an AI and Automation lab:
SDL1 - Inorganic solid-state compounds for advanced materials and energy
SDL2 - Organic small molecules for sustainability and health
SDL3 - Medicinal chemistry for improving small molecule drug candidates
SDL4 - Polymers for materials science and biological applications
SDL5 - Formulations for pharmaceuticals, consumer products, and coatings
SDL6 - Biocompatibility with organoids / organ-on-a-chip
SDL7 - Synthetic scale-up of materials and molecules (University of British Colombia partner lab)
A central AI and Automation lab to support all the SDLs
This posted position is for a role with SDL4 (Polymers)
Expertise that is desired:
Polymer synthesis
Synthesis and purification of polymers
Combinatorial synthesis of sequence-defined polymers such as biopolymers
Additional expertise that is desired (but not required):
Automation
Robotics and automation
Machine learning to accelerate the discovery of molecules and materials
Experimental planning and design/optimization
Programming and high-performance computing
Additional expertise that is desired (but not required):
Automation
Developing polymer blends or composites for 3D printing, concrete, packaging or textiles
Bioengineering applications using biologically relevant materials such as peptides, peptoids, chitosan or lignan
Staff Scientists will work with a diverse team of leading experts at U of T, including:
Prof. Helen Tran, Prof. Dwight Seferos, and Acceleration Consortium Staff Scientists.
We are hiring both Staff Scientists and Staff Research Scientists. While Staff Scientists are expected to have 5 or more years of post-PhD experience, individuals with a relevant Ph.D. and associated expertise can qualify for Staff Research Scientist.
The Staff Research Scientists involved in the AC are highly skilled and experienced researchers who will work independently to develop the AI and automation technologies required to build robust and scalable self-driving labs, manage these SDLs, and design and implement research programs (based on the direction of the AC’s scientific leadership team) that leverage the SDL platforms to discover materials…