Postdoctoral Research Associate in Modelling Reaction Chemistry in Condensed Phase Systems, ORNL
Job Description
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is hiring a Postdoctoral Research Associate to model reaction chemistry in liquids, using neural network potentials and enhanced sampling. The call is open until filled.
At a glance
- Post: Postdoctoral Research Associate in Modelling Reaction Chemistry in Condensed Phase Systems
- Where: Chemical Dynamics Group, Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, USA
- Requisition ID: 17232
- Closing date: none given. ORNL reviews applications as they arrive, so the post is open until filled
- Pay: the advertisement states no figure
Read the official ORNL advertisement before you apply.
The work
The post applies computational methods to reaction chemistry in condensed phase systems. The named toolkit is unusually specific: enhanced sampling molecular dynamics with neural network potentials, statistical mechanics including rare-event theory, Markov state models for molecular kinetics, electronic structure theory such as density functional theory, spectroscopic mapping and modelling, and machine learning.
The target is molecular reactivity in liquid media. Reactions in solution are hard to simulate honestly: the interesting events are rare, the solvent matters, and the accuracy you need is beyond what classical force fields give. Neural network potentials are what has made this tractable.
You would work in a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional team of theorists, spectroscopists and organic chemists, advancing understanding of the structural, thermodynamic and dynamical aspects of reaction chemistry in aqueous and organic media.
What you need
- A PhD in chemistry, chemical physics, materials science or a related field
- Molecular dynamics with enhanced sampling, and electronic structure theory
- Experience with machine-learned potentials is directly relevant
- Read the official advertisement for the full qualifications
Pay and conditions
ORNL publishes no salary figure on this advertisement. It is a US Department of Energy Office of Science national laboratory with more than 7,000 staff, and postdoctoral appointments there are normally fixed-term with the possibility of renewal. Ask about the term and the pay band at interview.
How to apply
Apply through the ORNL job page using the Apply button, quoting requisition 17232. The advertisement gives no closing date, so apply early. Most ORNL positions require the right to work in the United States, and some roles touching nuclear or export-controlled work carry citizenship conditions. Read the posting’s own wording before you spend time on an application from outside the US.
Browse more research jobs on ResearchJobs.in, or search our Find a supervisor page.
Hiring institution: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Official advertisement: jobs.ornl.gov
How to prepare for this application
- Rare events are the hard part. Metadynamics, umbrella sampling or committor analysis are all worth naming.
- The team includes spectroscopists. Show you can connect a simulation to a measurable spectrum.
- Quote the requisition ID, 17232. ORNL tracks applications by it.
- Check the work-authorisation line on the posting. It is the usual reason an overseas application stalls at a national laboratory.
About Oak Ridge National Laboratory
ORNL is the largest US Department of Energy Office of Science laboratory, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with a legacy going back to the 1940s and more than 7,000 staff. It runs national user facilities including the Spallation Neutron Source and the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, and works across computing, materials, chemistry, nuclear science, biology and energy.
