Research Associate in Astrophysics

Job summary

Applications are invited for a 2-year Research Associate position within the Astrophysics Group in the Department of Physics at Imperial College London. We are seeking candidates with expertise in exoplanetary atmospheres, with preference from a modelling and/or theoretical perspective; however, strong observational candidates will be considered.

Job listing information

• Reference NAT01552
• Date posted 6 October 2023
• Closing date 6 November 2023

Key information about the role

• Location South Kensington Campus - Hybrid

• Position type Full time, fixed term
• Salary £45,593 – £53,630 plus benefits

• Department Department of Physics
• Category Researcher / Non Clinical Researcher

Job description

Job summary

Applications are invited for a 2-year Research Associate position within the Astrophysics Group in the Department of Physics at Imperial College London. We are seeking candidates with expertise in exoplanetary atmospheres, with preference from a modelling and/or theoretical perspective; however, strong observational candidates will be considered.

Duties and responsibilities

Astrophysics at imperial has a strong programme in solar and stellar physics, exoplanet physics, protoplanetary disc physics, and galactic and extragalactic star formation, involving observations, numerical simulations and theory. The Group further fosters collaborations with the solar system and planetary group to apply insights and models for solar system bodies to exoplanetary systems, and with the plasma physics group to model phenomena such as stellar jets and star-planet magnetic interactions. It also has an internationally recognised centre for astrostatistics, with emphasis on Bayesian analysis of large-scale astronomical surveys, cosmology and particle physics.

This position is supported by Dr James Owen's ERC funded project "PEVAP" which aims to understand the origin and evolution of planetary systems and the Royal Society.  You will be expected to help produce independent and original research, submit publications to refereed journals and support the activities of the research group. You will have the freedom to develop your own research program alongside other members of the exoplanet group and have access to Imperial's significant HPC resources. The position is open, with a preference to start at soon as possible. The funding is available until Spring 2026.

You will join a vibrant, broad and growing exoplanet research group at Imperial with opportunities to collaborate not only with members of the exoplanet group but with other Imperial members with planetary interests. The main goal of the position is to model the evolution of evolving exoplanetary atmospheres, with a particular focus on the observational signatures. One major area will be considering the evolution of sub-Neptune atmospheres. Previous experience in any of these aspects would be beneficial for the position, but is not mandatory.

Significant funding is available for travel, visitors and computing in line with ERC funded projects.

Essential requirements

You must hold a PhD (or equivalent) in Astronomy, Planetary Science, or Physics.*

You must also be able to demonstrate the following essential criteria:

• Relevant research experience in exoplanet science.
• Experience in carrying out research of high quality, independently and in a team, evidenced by a portfolio of high quality research publications.

In addition, knowledge and experience in the following areas would be desirable:

• Relevant research experience in atmospheric structure and chemistry of primary and/or secondary exoplanet atmospheres.
• Relevant research experience in the geophysics/geodynamics/chemical evolution of planetary interiors.  
• Relevant research experience in transmission spectroscopy of exoplanet atmospheres.

Further information

*Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as Research Assistant within the salary range £40,694 - £43,888 per annum.

In the application form instead of a supporting statement please upload a research proposal less than three pages.

More information about the Department of Physics and the Astrophysics Group can be found on our webpages.

The Department of Physics is an IoP JUNO Practitioner and an Athena Silver SWAN Award winner reflecting our commitment to building a supportive, inclusive and highly motivated community.  See our EDI webpage for more Information. We strongly encourage applications from all backgrounds, especially those historically underrepresented in Physics.

 Further details about the position are available from Dr James Owen james.owen@imperial.ac.uk

Should you have any queries about the application process please contact Louise Hayward, Section Administrator, l.hayward@imperial.ac.uk.

Documents

• Job Description - NAT01552 .pdf