Undergraduate Technical Intern - EMSL

Overview

At PNNL, our core capabilities are divided among major departments that we refer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research or other function, with its own leadership team and dedicated budget.

Our Science & Technology directorates include National Security, Earth and Biological Sciences, Physical and Computational Sciences, and Energy and Environment. In addition, we have an Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus.

The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) is a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus.

The Earth and Biological Sciences Directorate (EBSD) leads critical research in four areas:
Atmospheric, Climate & Earth Sciences, Biological Sciences, Environmental Molecular Sciences, and Global Change. Our vision is to develop a predictive understanding of biological and Earth systems in transition. We aim to understand energy and material flows within the integrated Earth system; to understand, predict, and control the response of biosystems to environmental and/or genomic changes; and to Model the Earth system from the subsurface to the atmosphere.

The Environmental Molecular Sciences Division is comprised of 18 interdisciplinary research teams focused on deciphering molecular-level interactions driving biological and environmental processes across temporal and spatial scales. Through computational analysis and modeling, these findings contribute to predictive understanding of how systems respond to environmental perturbations thus enabling solutions to the nation’s energy, environmental, and human health challenges. The division also manages the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus that accelerates the research of scientists around the world by providing access to world-class expertise, instrumentation, and computational resources.

The Environmental Molecular Sciences Division seeks an energetic undergraduate-level part-time intern to fill a cutting-edge undergraduate research assistant position that supports current field campaigns sponsored by the Department of Energy (DOE). The successful candidate will be mentored by several EMSL scientists to work in the EMSL User Facility and engage in research on a DOE project in coordination with the EMSL User Facility and the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) partners.

The applicant will be expected to support field campaigns by organizing supplies, maintaining instruments for particle sample collection, preparing the sampling device (e.g., impactors and filters), cataloging the field samples, and quality checking the field samples using electron and optical microscopy. This position will provide an opportunity to work with multiple teams of scientists and build professional networks inside and outside of PNNL.

The position will provide the opportunity to use many advanced tools available within EMSL to elucidate atmospheric aerosol particles. Applicants with backgrounds in chemistry, physics, engineering, and environmental science are desired. Prior experience in operating research-grade instruments and data analysis is preferred. The candidate should demonstrate strong communication and interpersonal skills. The position also offers opportunities to contribute to peer-reviewed manuscript preparation and publication.

EMSL is a national scientific user facility and research division at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). EMSL is supported and stewarded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER). The EMSL User facility is designed to provide innovative and breakthrough experimental and computational science that addresses the BER mission goals by providing access to more than 75 state-of-the-art instrumental and computational capabilities.

EMSL Users address some of the most important molecular‑to‑mesoscale challenges relevant to DOE missions.

Please note this is a year‑round position and…