We offer 2 postdoc positions at the University of Trieste, Italy. The postdocs will work under the supervision of Maria Peressi and Antimo Marrazzo and benefit from strong interactions with leading industries and their R&D laboratories on 1) the calculation of drag reduction in graphene through neural-network molecular dynamics simulations and 2) the development of AiiDA workflows for automated training of neural-network interatomic potentials. The first position is part a research project on atomistic simulations of adhesion, defectivity and surface chemistry of graphene-based coatings; while the second position is part of a project on simulation-guided discovery of advanced green materials.

The positions are sponsored by Innovation grants of the PNRR national center of HPC, Big data and Quantum Computing, nation-wide research projects in collaboration with other academic institutions (experimental and computational groups) and with private industries (Leonardo Spa and National Railways the first position, ENI the other).

The contracts are initially for one year (renewals are possible), starting between January and May 2024.

Scientific environment 

The city of Trieste has the highest density of researchers per population in Europe (37 every 1000 inhabitants). Trieste has a particularly strong tradition in electronic structure theory and simulations, which is fostered by the University of Trieste and other research institutions such as ICTP, SISSA and the Materials Foundry of the National Research Council (CNR-IOM). The close proximity of several research institutions facilitates scientific exchange and collaborative work not only among theorists but also with leading experimental groups at the local synchrotron (ELETTRA), free-electron laser (FERMI) and materials foundry (CNR-IOM) as well as at the University.

Qualification

Candidates are sought with passion and commitment to the field and with strong motivation and commensurate academic record. Expertise in the development and application of first-principles techniques is required. The ideal candidate has a robust and documented expertise in the use of electronic-structure simulation software (e.g. Quantum ESPRESSO) and classical molecular dynamics (e.g. LAMMPS), including the exploitation of HPC infrastructures and materials’ informatics (e.g. AiiDA). Previous experience with machine learning methods and proficient Python coding are considered a plus.

Expression of interest
We strongly encourage interested candidates to send an expression of interest to positions.cmts.df.units AT gmail _DOT_ com by using the tag “[industry postdoc]” in the object. The deadline for expressions of interest is end of October, the position will be closed as soon as suitable candidates are found. Applicants should include:

- a detailed CV containing a list of publications and a detailed description of both scientific and computational background,

- motivation letter (max 1 page),

- the name and email address of at least one person (two is better) who might be contacted for a reference letter.

Trieste 

The city is medium size and beautifully located at the most northerly spot of the Adriatic Sea.  Local social life is lively, with cultural and natural attractions (theatres, sports, nightlife, the Karst highland, Venice, the Alps, and beautiful seaside resorts) a few strides to one hundred miles from the center of the city. Trieste is also an international sailing capital, hosting every year the world’s largest regatta and regularly producing top Olympic sailing athletes.