Postdoctoral fellowships at Northwestern University

  1. Sargent-Kanatzidis Joint-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in electrocatalytic materials development: Electrified CO2 Capture and Release, Reactive Capture and Oxygen Evolution Reaction
  2. Post-Doctoral Fellowships/Research Associate in technoeconomic analysis (TEA) and life-cycle analysis (LCA)
  3. Dunn-Sargent Jointly-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in CO2 capture and upgrade: Technoeconomic analysis (TEA), life-cycle assessment (LCA), and process design and optimization
  4. Director of Strategic Communications, Sargent Group, Northwestern University (appointment as Post-Doctoral Fellow)
  5. Talapin-Sargent Jointly-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in Low-Dimensional Materials Synthesis and Application
  6. Research Associate and Experimental R&D Specialist

 

Sargent-Kanatzidis Joint-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in electrocatalytic materials development: Electrified CO2 Capture and Release, Reactive Capture and Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Area of Research: Our research focuses on using electricity to power chemical transformations involving carbon. The goal is to reduce the carbon intensity of the production of chemicals and fuels that, today, mostly rely on fossil hydrocarbons. We seek especially to lower the intensity of large-scale commodity chemicals and fuels.

Our approach is to unite basic and applied science in order to pursue this mission-oriented goal. Our team seeks to attract experts in chemistry (electrochemistry, physical chemistry including operando spectroscopy and surface chemistry, computational chemistry) and engineering (especially materials synthesis/properties/processing, electrical engineering, chemical engineering), often with a significant role for AI/machine learning in seeking to accelerate discovery.

The specific programs we lead include:

  • Reactive capture: upgrading CO2 directly from the captured state [1].
  • CO2/CO upcycling, focusing especially on creating ever more valuable and complex molecules [2, 3].
  • CO2 capture and release, emphasizing reducing the energy cost of CO2 release, and electrifying the full process.
  • Green hydrogen, focusing on platinum-group-metals-free, durable and highly active oxygen evolution reaction catalysts for water electrolyzers.
  • Coupled electrolysis, wherein reductive chemistries (such as CO2-to-value) are paired with an economically valuable anodic reaction, an example of which is propylene to propylene oxide/propylene glycol [4, 5].

Description of Duties: Successful candidates will be co-advised by Prof. Edward H. Sargent and Prof. Mercouri Kanatzidis. They will place their major focus on achieving original first-authored publications in interdisciplinary academic journals. They will work effectively in a team environment and will value the chance to reach across disciplines, and to work with partners in industry and at our partner U.S. Department of Energy national labs. Post-doctoral fellows will take advantage of the opportunity to increase their mentoring skills, helping doctoral students to develop as scientist-engineers.

Essential Qualifications:

  • Applicants must have received, or be close to receiving, their PhD degree in an area of science or engineering.
  • Applicants are sought who have backgrounds in a field of engineering or science relevant to CO2 chemistry and electrochemistry. We also seek candidates with expertise from relevant allied fields, such as matertials, thermocatalysis, photocatalysis, fuel cells, batteries, and water-splitting electrolyzers.
  • Applicants must possess at least one of the following, or transferable skills:
    • The design of materials for electrocatalysis and/or CO2 capture and release; mechanistic investigations of reactive pathways;
    • Materials chemistry/synthesis including of laminate/2D materials, metal oxides, metal hydroxides, high-entropy alloys and oxides, single-atom and other advanced catalysts;
    • Candidates with expertise in fundamental electrochemistry, such as studies of ion-intercalation mechanisms, charge transfer models, PCET mechanisms, field effects, and electrolyte engineering

Salary: $57,000 USD/year

Expected Start Date: Dec 1, 2023, or as soon as possible thereafter

Appointment: Term – (12 months) with the potential for renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full academic CV; information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted; your two most relevant publications. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line CO2 PDF Application by Oct. 1, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

Posting Date: Sept. 1, 2023

Closing Date: Oct. 1, 2023

References

 

Post-Doctoral Fellowships/Research Associate in technoeconomic analysis (TEA) and life-cycle analysis (LCA)

Area of Research: Our research focuses on using electricity to power chemical transformations involving carbon. The goal is to reduce the carbon intensity of the production of chemicals, food indigents and fuels that, today, mostly rely on fossil hydrocarbons. We seek especially to lower the intensity of large-scale commodity chemicals, food indigents and fuels.

Our approach is to unite basic and applied science in order to pursue this mission-oriented goal. Our team seeks to attract experts conducting technoeconomic analysis (TEA) and life-cycle analysis (LCA) of electrocatalytic processes, biological processes and thermocatalytic processes, including their cascade approaches.

The specific processes we are considering include:

  • Artificial food production that uses methane as feedstock.
  • Artificial food production that uses CO2 as feedstock.
  • Direct air capture (DAC) of CO2, including capture, transportation and sequestration.

Description of Duties: Successful candidates will place their major focus on achieving original first-authored publications in interdisciplinary academic journals. They will work effectively in a team environment and will value the chance to reach across disciplines and to work with partners in industry and at our partner U.S. Department of Energy national labs. Post-doctoral fellows will take advantage of the opportunity to increase their mentoring skills, helping doctoral students to develop as scientist-engineers.

Essential Qualifications:

  • Applicants must have received, or be close to receiving, their PhD degree in an area of chemical engineering, bioengineering, civil engineering, environmental science or other related fields.
  • Applicants must possess at least one of the following, or transferable skills:
    • Expertise in topics related to the bioreactor, thermocatalysis, electrocatalysis, carbon capture and separation process.
    • Expertise in topics related to SOC sequestration and GHG emissions in crop production.
    • Demonstrated ability to perform LCA and TEA and to write related scientific reports.
    • Experience using process modeling tools such as Aspen Plus, CHEMCAD, and/or SuperPro.
    • Experience using software such as GREET, openLCA, SimaPro, or GaBi.

Salary: $58,000 USD/year

Expected Start Date: Jan 1, 2024, or as soon as possible thereafter

Appointment: Term – (12 months) with the potential for renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full academic CV; information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted; your two most relevant publications. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line CO2 PDF Application by Nov 20, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

Posting Date: Oct 28, 2023

Closing Date: Nov 20, 2023

 

Dunn-Sargent Jointly-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in CO2 capture and upgrade: Technoeconomic analysis (TEA), life-cycle assessment (LCA), and process design and optimization

Areas of Research: Prof. Jennifer Dunn and Prof. Edward H. Sargent seek jointly to attract post-doctoral fellows analyzing the path to a timely and just energy transition.

Elements will include the analysis of CO2 capture, CO2 upgrade to fuels and chemicals, and the defossiilization of electricity, industrial processes, and agriculture.

The incumbents will join an interdisciplinary team and will contribute expertise that includes:

  • Life cycle assessment and technoeconomic analysis, informed by process optimization and uncertainty analysis;
  • The computational and experimental investigation of CO2 capture and release (including electrified), as well as CO2 electrocatalytic upgrade.

Flows of interest/to be evaluated include electrocatalytic processes, biological processes and thermocatalytic processes, including their combined/cascade approaches.

Specific topics and targets for analysis include:

  1. Direct air capture (DAC) of CO2, including capture, transport, and sequestration; as a function of the source of electricity, including analysis of its intermittency, its carbon intensity; and with analysis of the cost and overall carbon intensity of the related capital plant and its maintenance.
  2. The production of food/food molecules from CO2.

Description of Duties: Successful candidates will place their major focus on achieving original first-authored publications in interdisciplinary academic journals. They will work effectively in a team environment and will value the chance to reach across disciplines and to work with partners in industry and at our partner U.S. Department of Energy national labs. Post-doctoral fellows will take advantage of the opportunity to increase their mentoring skills, helping doctoral students to develop as scientist-engineers.

Essential Qualifications:

  • Applicants must have received, or be close to receiving, their PhD degree in an area of chemical engineering, bioengineering, civil engineering, environmental sciences, chemistry, materials science, or a related field.
  • Applicants must possess at least one of the following, or transferable skills:
    • Expertise in topics related to the bioreactors, thermocatalysis, electrocatalysis, and/or carbon capture and separation processes.
    • Expertise in topics related to net GHG emissions associated with the end-to-end process of crop production.
    • Demonstrated ability to perform LCA and TEA and to write related scientific reports.
    • Experience in process modeling, including in the use of tools such as Aspen Plus, CHEMCAD, SuperPro.
    • Experience levering open-source software such as GREET, openLCA, SimaPro, or GaBi.

Salary: $58,000 USD/year and above based on experience.

Expected Start Date: Jan 1, 2024, or as soon as possible thereafter

Appointment: Term – (12 months) with the potential for renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full academic CV; information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted; your two most relevant publications. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line “Dunn-Sargent TEA/LCA PDF Application” by Nov. 20, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

Posting Date: Oct 28, 2023

Closing Date: Nov 20, 2023

 

Director of Strategic Communications, Sargent Group, Northwestern University (appointment as Post-Doctoral Fellow)

Overview:

We seek a highly motivated professional to join the group of Edward H. Sargent at Northwestern University and to serve as Director of Strategic Communications. The appointment will be made initially at the level of Post-Doctoral Fellow. In this role, you will be responsible for scientific writing and editing, including of manuscripts and cover letters for scholarly journals; for contributing to partnership development, such as with industry partners, national labs, and NGOs; and for engaging with existing partners such as on reporting relative to committed activities and targets. The candidate will possess excellent communication skills (written and oral), proven experience in research in engineering/science, and evidence of skills in project management.

Responsibilities:

  1. Scientific Writing and Editing:
  • Contribute to high-quality scholarly articles for dissemination in leading interdisciplinary academic journals.
  • Collaborate with scientists and researchers to translate complex scientific concepts into clear and accessible content.
  • Contribute to mentoring students and postdoctoral fellows, including in their professional development as it relates to scientific communication.
  • Generate accurate and clear written materials, and develop and present materials for oral presentation, including to update research project sponsors and partners on our contributions relative to committed targets and deliverables.
  1. Partnership Development:
  • Develop visually appealing presentations to support business development activities.
  • Contribute to the writing of compelling grant proposals.
  • Work closely with the senior team in the research group to identify and pursue new funding opportunities.
  • Represent our group at conferences and industry events to develop new partnerships.
  1. Ideation
  • Collaborate with the team to identify and refine innovative ideas for research directions.
  • Stay up-to-date with the latest scientific advancements and trends in the field to inform and guide communication strategies.

Requirements:

  • PhD degree in a field of engineering, or in chemistry or physics or materials science.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills – proven ability to convey complex scientific concepts to diverse audiences, with accuracy and clarity.
  • Proven project management skills, with the ability to prioritize tasks, meet deadlines, and coordinate multiple projects simultaneously.
  • Desirably:
    • Prior experience with grant writing and/or reporting to sponsors

Salary: $75,000 USD/year

Expected Start Date: Dec 1, 2023, or soon thereafter

Appointment: An initial 12 month term, with the possibility of renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full academic CV; information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line “Director of Strategic Communications PDF Application” by Oct 25, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

Posting Date: Sept 26, 2023

Closing Date: Oct 25, 2023

 

Talapin-Sargent Jointly-advised Post-Doctoral Fellowships in Low-Dimensional Materials Synthesis and Applications

Area of Research: The Talapin (Chicago) and Sargent (Northwestern) groups wish to join forces on a concerted shared effort to advance novel nanomaterials synthesis for performance, and to demonstrate such materials in devices and systems.

Description of Duties: Successful candidates will be co-advised by Prof. Edward H. Sargent and Prof. Dmitri Talapin. The primary appointment can be either at Chicago or Northwestern depending on the preferences of the candidate. The focus of the project will be jointly determined by the incumbent in consultation with Sargent and Talapin. It will be carried out in experimental labs on both university campuses, with the time allocation determined by the incumbent with the priority being to maximize the quality, speed, and impact of the joint research project.

The major target will be original first-authored publications in interdisciplinary academic journals. They will work effectively in a team environment and will value the chance to reach across disciplines, and to work with partners in industry and at our partner U.S. Department of Energy national labs. Post-doctoral fellows will take advantage of the opportunity to increase their mentoring skills, helping doctoral students to develop as scientist-engineers.

Essential Qualifications:

  • Applicants must have received, or be close to receiving, their PhD degree in an area of science or engineering.
  • Applicants are sought who have backgrounds in materials chemistry, materials synthesis, materials processing, and/or optoelectronic devices.

Salary: $57,000 USD/year

Expected Start Date: Dec 1, 2023, or as soon as possible thereafter

Appointment: Term – (12 months) with the potential for renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full academic CV; information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted; your two most relevant publications. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line “Talapin-Sargent Joint PDF” by Oct 30, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

Posting Date: Sept. 27, 2023

Closing Date: Oct 30, 2023

 

Research Associate and Experimental R&D Specialist

Job Summary:
The Sargent group at Northwestern University is seeking a Research Associate and Experimental R&D Specialist.

Our focus includes (1) CO2 capture and electrified upgrade to chemicals, materials, and fuels [refs. 1,2,3 below]; (2) Photovoltaic energy harvesting, such as in tandem cells based on silicon and perovskite materials [4]. (3) Optoelectronic materials and devices, such as those based on colloidal quantum dots and related reduced-dimensional systems [5].

Description of Responsibilities:
The responsibilities of this position include operating and managing key equipment, training users, and troubleshooting; and contributing to experimental setup design, data collection and analysis, and result interpretation in manuscripts, scholarly presentations, and partner discussions. The incumbent will work effectively in a team environment and will reach across disciplines, working with partners in industry and at U.S. Department of Energy labs. The work effort will lead to co-authored and first-authored publications in interdisciplinary academic journals.

Technical:

  • Equipment operation, maintenance, troubleshooting, training, and data collection.
  • Establishment of in-house experimental setups
  • Drafting and updating of equipment standard operation procedures
  • Use of advanced electrical, mechanical, and optical knowledge in enabling research.

Collaboration

  • Participate in strategy-setting for the future direction and needs of the group
  • Contribute to manuscript development and revisions in response to peer reviews
  • Engage with the community and with sponsors.

Administration

  • Maintain laboratory supplies and materials inventory
  • Work with the team on equipment modifications, places orders for components, accessories, and vendor services.
  • Assist with new equipment purchase, quote acquisition, and lead discussions with vendors
  • Implement lab safety and provides a safe work environment.

Qualifications:

Minimum Qualifications:

  • PhD in Physics, Chemistry, Engineering, or a related field.
  • Four years of relevant domain expertise.

Minimum Competencies (skills, knowledge, and abilities.)

  • Excellent hands-on experimental lab
  • Experimental design ability.
  • Good communication skills and ability to work as part of a project team.

       Preferred Qualifications:

  • Four years of research experience in at least one of these fields: electrocatalytic systems, solar cells, ultrafast laser systems, electronic and optoelectronic materials.
  • Prior success in research grant applications and/or corporate partnership development.

Salary: $78,000 USD/year
Expected Start date: Jan 1, 2024, or as soon as possible thereafter
Appointment: Term-(12 months) with the potential for renewal

How to apply:

Please include in your application package a cover letter; your full CV; and information on 2 referees that are prepared to be consulted. Please send as a single combined PDF whose file name includes your first and last names to Melissa Rosen (melissa.rosen@northwestern.edu) with the subject line “Research Associate and R&D Specialist” by November 30, 2023. Evaluation of candidates will begin immediately and continue until filled.

References:

  • Electrochemical upgrade of CO2 from amine capture solution, G. Lee, Y. C. Li, J. Kim, T. Peng, D. Nam, A. S. Rasouli, F. Li, M. Luo, A. H. Ip, Y. Joo, E. H. Sargent*, Nature Energy, DOI: 10.1038/s41560-020-00735-z
  • Selective synthesis of butane from carbon monoxide using cascade electrolysis and thermocatalysis at ambient conditions, M. G. Lee, X. Li, A. Ozden, J. Wicks, P. Ou, Y. Li, R. Dorakhan, J. Lee, H. K. Park, J. W. Yang, B. Chen, J. Abed, R. dos Reis, G. Lee, J. E. Huang, T. Peng, Y. (C.) Chin, D. Sinton, E. H. Sargent*, Nature Catalysis, DOI: 10.1038/s41929-023-00937-0
  • Constrained C2 adsorbate orientation enables CO-to-acetate electroreduction, J. Jin, Joshua Wicks, Qiuhong Min, Jun Li… et al. Liqiang Mai*, Edward H. Sargent*, Yuanjie Pang*, Nature, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05918-8 (in press)
  • Low-loss contacts on textured substrates for inverted perovskite solar cells. S. M. Park, M. Wei, N. Lempesis, W. Yu, T. Hossain, L. Agosta, V. Carnevali, H. R. Atapattu, P. Serles, F. T. Eickemeyer, H. Shin, M. Vafaie, D. Choi, K. Darabi, E. D. Jung, Y. Yang, D. B. Kim , S. M. Zakeeruddin, B. Chen, A. Amassian, T. Filleter , M. G. Kanatzidis, K. R. Graham, L. Xiao , U. Rothlisberger, M. Grätzel & E. H. Sargent*, Nature, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06745-7
  • Halide-Driven Synthetic Control of InSb Colloidal Quantum Dots Enables Short-Wave Infrared Photodetectors. Muhammad, D. Choi, D. H. Parmar, B. Rehl, Y. Zhang, O. Atan, G. Kim, P. Xia, J. M. Pina, M. Li, Y. Liu, O. Voznyy, S. Hoogland, and E. H. Sargent*, Advanced Materials, DOI: 10.1002/adma.202306147