Post Doctorate RA - Battery Materials & Systems

Overview

At PNNL,our core capabilities are dividedamongmajor departments that werefer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research orother function, with its own leadership teamand dedicated budget.

Our Science & Technologydirectoratesinclude National Security,Earthand Biological Sciences, Physical and Computational Sciences, and Energy and Environment.

The Energy and Environment Directoratedeliversscience and technology solutions for the nation’s biggest energy and environmental challenges. Our more than 1,700 staff support the Department of Energy (DOE), delivering on key DOE mission areas including: modernizing our nation’s power grid to maintain a reliable, affordable, secure, and resilient electricity delivery infrastructure; research, development, validation, and effective utilization of renewable energy and efficiency technologies that improve the affordability, reliability, resiliency, and security of the American energy system;

and resolving complex issues in nuclear science, energy, and environmental management.

The Energy Processes and Materials Division, part of the Energy and Environment Directorate, creates and delivers real world solutions that support the Department of Energy’s goals for national energy security. We deliver new technologies that connect fundamental science to applications in areas such as energy storage, advanced materials manufacturing, applied catalysis, advanced separations, biomass conversions, carbon capture and utilization, and hydrogen production and storage.

We employ a systems perspective that includes discovery, technology development, and scale-up as well as economic, regulatory, and market acceptance issues necessary for successful technology commercialization.

The Battery Materials & Systems Group within the Energy and Environment Directorate seeks an outstanding postdoctoral research scientist with a strong background in inorganic synthesis, materials science, and electrochemistry. This position is for an inorganic chemist, materials scientist, or electrochemist with hands‑on experience in the design, synthesis, and characterization of electrochemical materials for energy conversion.

The primary focus of this role is to drive innovative research within a growing team of scientists and engineers developing advanced electrocatalysts, inorganic proton conducting membranes, and other functional materials for fuel cells, electrochemical CO2 reduction, and related electrochemical energy conversion systems. The successful candidate will work collaboratively across interrelated projects, focusing on the rational design of inorganic materials—such as platinum-group-metal and non‑precious‑metal catalysts, mixed‑metal oxides, and nanostructured composites—to enhance activity, selectivity, and durability under operating conditions.

Project work will include the synthesis and advanced characterization of inorganic electrochemical materials (e.g., XRD, XPS, electron microscopy, and electrochemical methods), as well as systematic evaluation of their performance in half‑cell and full‑cell configurations. The successful candidate will be responsible for catalyst and/or inorganic proton membrane development from materials discovery through electrode fabrication, membrane–electrode assembly integration, and device‑level testing, in coordination with senior scientists and the project manager.

Additionally, the candidate will have opportunities to leverage automated and high‑throughput experimental workflows—including robotic synthesis platforms, automated electrochemical test stations, and machine‑learning‑guided experimental design—to accelerate materials discovery and optimization. They will also prepare manuscripts for publication, present their work internally and externally at national/international conferences, and develop new ideas for funded research.

• Candidates must have received a PhD within the past five years (60 months) or within the next 8 months from an accredited college or university.

• Ph.D. in electrochemistry, chemistry, materials science, chemical…