Postdoctoral Appointee - Pressure-dependent gas-phase reaction kinetics and collisional energy transfer, Onsite

Job Details

Job

Location Livermore, CA

Full-Time

Temporary

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. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..gov

* These benefits vary by job classification.

We seek a motivated postdoc to work with Dr. Leonid Sheps at Sandia National Lab on direct experimental probing of pressure-dependent gas-phase chemistry. The aim of this project is understanding the detailed interactions of chemical transformations and collisional energy transfer, with a special focus on identifying, predicting, and controlling the effects of activated intermediates and non-thermal reactions. The effort will span a range of chemical complexity, from collisional relaxation of model polyatomics, to elementary kinetics of small hydrocarbons, to complex chemical reaction networks.

The successful candidate will gain experience in laboratory kinetics and dynamics studies using cutting-edge experimental methods. In addition, you will collaborate closely with a multi-investigator team at Argonne National Labs. Some of the activities you will engage in include:

• Investigating chemical reactions initiated by photolysis, laser excitation, and thermal decomposition.
• Using multiplexed time-resolved mass spectrometry, photoelectron-photoion coincidence, and laser-induced fluorescence to detect and quantify key reaction intermediates and products.
• Modeling of complex chemical reactions using a new in-house master equation optimization code.
• Working with colleagues who focus on computational kinetics to connect experimental results with theoretical predictions.
• Presenting results at national/international meetings and publishing research in peer-reviewed journals.

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

• PhD degree in chemistry, physics, or a related field
• Experience in one or more of the following: experimental chemical kinetics, mass spectrometry, or laser spectroscopy
• Strong record of collaborative research and publications in peer-reviewed journals.

• Ability to address complex problems creatively, and to work effectively both independently and in collaboration with others
• Experience with design and construction of experimental apparatus
• Familiarity with molecular beams, flow reactors, ion imaging, programming for data acquisition and analysis
• Knowledge of computational kinetics or chemical modeling

The Gas Phase Chemical Physics Department is part of Sandia's Combustion Research Facility (CRF) in Livermore, California, where over 100 scientists, engineers, and technologists conduct basic and applied research to improve our nation's capabilities in gas-phase chemical physics. Under the principal sponsorship of the Department of Energy's Office of Basic Energy Sciences, the Gas Phase Chemical Physics Department conducts fundamental experimental, theoretical, and modeling research to develop a foundational understanding of the complex chemical reactions that occur either directly in the gas phase or influenced by it.

Research areas include chemical dynamics and spectroscopy, advanced diagnostics, ultrafast physics and chemistry, chemical kinetics, multi-phase chemical physics, pressure-dependent chemistry, and gas-surface interactions.

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.

This position does not…