What Your Job Will Be Like

Are you passionate about your work and dream of utilizing state-of-the-art facilities to explore solutions?  Join our dynamic team that solves significant issues for our nation’s security!

You could be the postdoctoral appointee we are seeking to partner with a dynamic team performing R&D in the area of multi-scale, multi-physics modeling and simulation. We intend to develop mesoscale and macroscale models that coupled thermal, chemical, electrochemical, fluid, and mechanical physics to capture relevant phenomena for a wide variety of national security applications.  You will execute these models on Sandia’s extensive high-performance computing assets using leading-edge multi-physics simulation codes.

You could perform multi-physics modeling and simulation analysis for a wide variety of application topic areas, to include:

• Performance and degradation of batteries, including primary and secondary cathode systems and lithium metal anodes
• Fluid-structural interactions of flow through deformable porous materials
• Chemical, thermal, radiative, and structural performance of composite materials
• Reactive wetting processes in braze joining
• Development of image-based simulation techniques and workflows, including uncertainty quantification
• Development of physics-informed neural networks for process-structure-property relationships applied to electroplating, physical vapor deposition, and additive manufacturing

You will show skills and interest in research spanning multiple disciplines, including heat transport, multi-material mechanical deformation, composite materials, microscale/mesoscale modeling, chemistry, electrochemistry, and fluid dynamics.

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Develop mathematical models for coupled fluid, thermal, chemical, radiative, and mechanical physics in composite materials or in component systems at both the meso- and macro-scales
• Perform large-scale computational analyses to answer scientific and engineering questions supporting technology development
• Interact within a dynamic team of experimental and computational scientists and engineers to develop this mission-critical technology.
• Work efficiently and independently under the supervision of a senior Sandia technical staff member
• Publish work in peer-reviewed scientific publications and in internal technical reports
• Present work to team members, customers, and the larger scientific community

Qualifications We Require

• You have, or are pursuing a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science/Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, or other related engineering or natural science field and will have completed your Ph.D. prior to starting at Sandia
• Experience with computational modeling and simulation with coupled thermal, mechanical, chemical, and/or fluid physics
• Experience with high-level programming or scripting languages, such as FORTRAN, C, C++, or Python and the Linux operating system
• You have a record of publication and innovation, as evidenced by peer-reviewed journals and external presentations at appropriate scientific conferences
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q security clearance

Qualifications We Desire

Ideally, your background should also include:

• Experience in modeling battery materials and systems
• Experience in composite materials modeling
• Experience in material science, materials processing, or materials manufacture including familiarity with composite, porous, or complex materials
• Experience in capillary-driven porous or free surface flows
• Experience in bringing together materials processing, modeling and experimental methods to improve material properties
• Experience with advanced simulation techniques (FEM/FEA, CFD, etc.) on massively parallel computing clusters
• Python development experience
• Experience with object-oriented programming in C++ within an existing, large code base.
• Experience with version control systems (e.g. Git, CVS, etc.)

About Our Team

The Thermal/Fluid Component Sciences Department at Sandia National Laboratories provides a wide range of fluid modeling and analysis, and experimental discovery and validation support in discipline areas such as: incompressible flow, porous flow, reactive flow, multiphase flow, thermal/fluid coupling, suspensions, plasma physics, and rarefied gas dynamics. The department supports activities spanning the entire research-design-analysis spectrum, from creating fundamental physical models, to developing computational algorithms and codes, to applying these models and codes to solve fluid and plasma problems in a wide range of applications.

Position Information

This postdoctoral position is a temporary position for up to one year, which may be renewed at Sandia's discretion up to five additional years. The PhD must have been conferred within five years prior to employment.

Individuals in postdoctoral positions may bid on regular Sandia positions as internal candidates, and in some cases may be converted to regular career positions during their term if warranted by ongoing operational needs, continuing availability of funds, and satisfactory job performance.

About Sandia

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas.  Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include; 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacations, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

*These benefits vary by job classification.

Security Clearance

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

EEO

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.