Postdoctoral Appointee Materials Modeling for Quantum Devices, Hybrid

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.

What Your Job Will Be Like

We are seeking Postdoctoral Appointees to develop and apply materials modeling, machine learning, and/or quantum simulation techniques to understand and predict optical defects with ideal properties for quantum systems. This work will involve one or more of the following activities:

• High-throughput first-principles calculations for structures with charged defects and inputting these simulations into graph neural network algorithms to accelerate predictions
• Scrutinizing the origin of discrepancies between predicted defect properties and experimental measurements using higher-accuracy computational methods
• Developing quantum protocols and estimating resource requirements for simulating defect systems on future fault-tolerant quantum computers

This position will require regular collaboration with a team using many different theoretical and experimental techniques.

Candidates should have experience in solid-state physics/materials modeling, machine learning in materials-relevant contexts, or quantum simulation applications. Experience with at least one of the following topics is encouraged but not required: Density Functional Theory, Molecular Dynamics, Machine Learning for Materials, Quantum Embedding Theory, Quantum Simulation Algorithms. Candidates with varying backgrounds and interests in QIS are encouraged to apply.

The Center for Computing Research is committed to maintaining a culture compatible with a broad group of people and perspectives in accordance with the changing makeup of the workforce. In support of this vision, the center actively recruits applicants from diverse backgrounds and fosters an inclusive community.

Qualifications

• PhD in Physics, Materials Science, Chemistry, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, or a related science or engineering field
• PhD must be conferred within five years prior to employment
• Record of research as demonstrated by publications in peer-reviewed journals and/or competitive conference proceedings, or high-impact program deliverables

Desired Qualifications

• Graduate-level experience with at least one of the following topics: Density Functional Theory, Molecular Dynamics, Machine Learning, Quantum Embedding Theory, Quantum Simulation Algorithms
• Proficiency in scientific computer programming
• Familiarity with multidisciplinary, large-team environments and ability to translate complex concepts to colleagues

About Our Team

You will be a member of one of the Quantum Information Science and Technology departments, where we pursue foundational research and development of quantum information processors that will provide exponential speed-ups for selected computational problems. Our work is central to a much larger quantum program at Sandia and we collaborate closely with hundreds of research scientists, postdocs, interns, and others across academia, national labs, and industry.