King's College London

About us

The available postdoctoral associate position is based in the Physics Department at King’s College London, one of the UK’s best Physics Departments with the QS World University Rankings placing us in the top 10 universities in the country. 

The Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences (NMES) comprises Chemistry, Engineering, Informatics, Mathematics, and Physics – all departments highly rated in research activities and a wide-ranging portfolio of education programmes.

About the role

Applications are invited for a postdoctoral position in the group of Dr. Chiara Gattinoni — within the Theory and Simulation of Condensed Matter research group — on the materials modelling of ultrathin ferroelectric films. The overall goal of this research project is to produce strategies to manipulate the polarization in ultrathin ferroelectrics, and to design ferroelectric thin films possessing the desired magnitude and direction of the polarization. 

The successful candidate will perform atomistic simulations, using both density functional theory and classical molecular dynamics, on ultrathin films of a range of ferroelectric perovskites of technological interest.

This position is supported by the EPSRC New Investigator Award grant “Customisable polarization in ultrathin ferroelectrics”.

The position is based in the Department of Physics, King’s College London on the Strand Campus in the heart of central London.

This is a full-time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract 1/12/2024 until 30/11/2026.

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1.      BSc in Physics, Materials Science of related subject

2.      PhD in Materials modelling, computational physics or related subject (either complete or close to completion)

3.      Excellent skills in programming and data analysis

4.      Experience of atomistic simulation techniques

5.      Flexible and collaborative

6.      Willingness to learn new skills

7.      Excellent communication skills

8.      Ability to work independently and as part of a team

Desirable criteria

1.      Experience of atomistic modelling of ferroelectric materials

2.      Experience in development and application of machine learned potentials

3.      Good presentation skills

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

* Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6.

Further Information

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘ How we Recruit’ pages.

Interviews are due to be held mid to end of October.

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.