Conducting research for a changing society: This is what drives us at Forschungszentrum Jülich. As a member of the Helmholtz Association, we aim to tackle the grand societal challenges of our time and conduct research into the possibilities of a digitized society, a climate-friendly energy system, and a resource-efficient economy. Work together with around 6,400 employees in one of Europe’s biggest research centres and help us to shape change!

Would you like to contribute to the energy transition in Germany through your work? Then the Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg (for Renewable Energy) (HI ERN) is the right place for you! The HI ERN forms the core of the close partnership between Forschungszentrum Jülich, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin for Materials and Energy, and Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) at the Erlangen site. The collaboration relates to the areas of innovative materials and processes for photovoltaic energy systems and hydrogen as a storage and carrier medium for CO2-neutral energy. Support us researching and developing solutions for the climate-neutral, sustainable, and cost-effective utilization of renewable energies.

The successful candidate will lead a large project team, aiming to accelerate material and component selection processes for next-generation proton exchange membrane electrolyzers (PEMEL). The harsh environments in state-of-the-art electrolyzers require expensive materials such as iridium oxide as catalysts and (platinized) titanium as porous transport layers and current collectors. The next generation aims to reduce the overall cost by increasing the lifetime and even replacing expensive materials. The team combines the expertise of both the Electrocatalysis and the Electrocatalytic Interface Engineering Department of HI ERN to develop new manufacturing methods and accelerated testing of PEMEL materials. We utilize internationally unique material and process characterization methods which are based on the sophisticated coupling of trace element analysis to electrochemical systems, additive manufacturing, and advanced physical analysis methods. Thereby the aim is to significantly contribute to the development of electrochemical energy conversion as a future key player for electromobility and the energy policy in general.

Join us as soon as possible as

Team Leader for high throughput testing capabilities of proton exchange membrane electrolyzers

Your Job:

• Coordination and research guidance for an interdisciplinary team of 12 PhD students (chemists, physicists, engineers, and datascientists)
• Developing and standardizing testing procedures and setups for porous transport layers, membranes, catalysts, and other parts of PEMELs
• Ensuring compatibility between the developed test setups and overseeing software and automation development
• Project management
• Representing the HI ERN in the project consortium, project meetings, and at international conferences
• Collaboration with partners within HI ERN and outside
• Writing papers and presenting the results in conferences
• Representing of the institute in project meetings

Your Profile:

• Excellent master and doctoral degree in Chemistry, Physics, Engineering, or a similar discipline
• Excellent background in electrochemical energy conversion research
• Strong background in method development and ideally high throughput methods
• Experience in supervising PhD students and postdocs
• Experience in one (or more) of the following areas is desirable: electrochemistry, electrocatalysis, high throughput automation and data treatment (LabVIEW, R, Python), element analytics (mass spectrometry, XPS, EDX), additive manufacturing
• Experience in acquiring 3rd party funding, publishing peer reviewed research, and speaking at international conferences
• Intrinsic motivation to show initiative, creativity, and to work independently
• Excellent cooperation and communication skills and ability to work as part of the team
• Excellent organizational skills
• Excellent skills in spoken and written English

Our Offer:

We work on the very latest issues that impact our society and are offering you the chance to actively help in shaping the change! We support you in your work with:

• A lively scientific environment within the institute and possibilities for cooperation with excellent partners at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, the Forschungszentrum Jülich, the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, and abroad
• Comprehensive training courses and individual opportunities for personal and professional further development
• Ideal conditions for balancing work and private life, as well as a family-friendly corporate policy
• Full-time position with the option of slightly reduced working hours and 30 days of annual leave

The position is initially for a fixed term of 5 years, with possible long-term prospects. Salary and social benefits in conformity with the provisions of the Collective Agreement for the Civil Service (TVöD). Depending on the applicant’s qualifications and the precise nature of the tasks, salary grade EG 13–14 TVöD-Bund.

Place of employment: Erlangen

Forschungszentrum Jülich promotes equal opportunities and diversity in its employment relations. We also welcome applications from disabled persons.

We look forward to receiving your application until 28.03.2021 via our Online Recruitment System!

Questions about the vacancy?

Get in touch with us by using our contact form. Please note that for technical reasons we cannot accept applications via email.

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