Research Engineer

Research Engineer

The Department of Nuclear Engineering seeks a Research Engineer to conduct reactor operations, system design, experimental facility design, computational modeling, and nuclear research. The position is within the PULSTAR research reactor program.

• Receive comprehensive training to obtain licensure as Senior Reactor Operator from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).
• Participate in design, installation, testing, operation, and maintenance of reactor plant and experimental facility systems.
• Develop detailed specifications for reactor and experiment system components, including design requirements, operational and maintenance procedures, laboratory safety, and radiation protection protocols.
• Formulate and execute reactor core and system simulations using high-performance computing (HPC) resources to ensure safe reactor operation.
• Design experimental facilities and conduct complex research utilizing computational resources; propose enhancements to improve research quality.
• Contribute to project documentation, reporting, author scholarly papers, and support proposal development for new projects.
• Perform nuclear system simulations, experimental facility design, and nuclear data generation to support safe operation of the PULSTAR research reactor; utilize HPC resources to run atomistic simulation, nuclear data generation, and radiation transport codes.

• Other tasks and responsibilities may be assigned based on the needs of the organization and evolving priorities.

Relevant Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering. Minimum 10 years of experience with:

• Utilization of reactor facility including administration of a service center.
• Providing technical input for generating proposals for academic and corporate users.
• Design and installation of experimental apparatus, testing, and report generation.

• Understanding of technical operating, service, or repair manuals.
• Experience in developing formal educational or training programs and instructing others.
• Experience in nuclear reactor analyses and benchmarks; experimental nuclear facility design; nuclear data evaluation and validation; modeling using molecular methods. Strong capability in MCNP, Serpent, NJOY, OpenFOAM, VASP, PHONON codes; programming in Fortran and Python, utilities such as MATLAB.
• Strong capabilities in using multiphysics simulation codes.

• Familiarity with safety and security culture and cyber-security mitigations at a research reactor facility.
• Experience with electronic systems including analog instrumentation, industrial I&C, LV power, automation, and/or radiation detection.
• Knowledge of analytical chemistry, chemical safety and hygiene, and/or radiochemistry.
• Analytical and high‑vacuum system design experience.

NC State University is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive equal opportunities for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, and veteran status. The University encourages all qualified applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities, to apply.