Postdoctoral research position on detector R&D for experimental particle physics (LHCb)

The High Energy Physics Laboratory [1] of EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, invites applications for a postdoc position to work on the LHCb experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. 

The lab is carrying out diverse research activities with strong involvement in physics analyses of LHCb data and a major role in the construction and operation of the new Scintillating Fibre (SciFi) Tracker for the LHCb detector upgrade and the new PLUME luminosity monitor for LHCb. The group also takes a major role in the R&D of the SciFi detector technology for further upgrades of the LHCb tracker, other particle or astroparticle physics experiments, and medical applications.

The new colleague will take an important role in the R&D to develop a vacuum-insulated and cryogenically cooled SciFi tracker for the LHCb Upgrade II. The focus of the work is the validation of the new readout, cooling and vacuum insulation concept to operate the SiPM photo-detectors at liquid nitrogen temperature. Working in a team with a cryo-engineer, a mechanical engineer and physicists, the new colleague will commission and operate a cryo-cooled SciFi detector system (demonstrator), acquire data in the lab and in test beam, and carry out irradiation studies on SciFi modules. This work will guide the design of the future large scale detector and lead the new colleague to take an important role in the LHCb SciFi project. 

We expect the candidate to have experience in detector R&D in radiation environment, DAQ programming and electronics. 

The position, which also comprises teaching duties at Bachelor or Master level and the supervision of PhD students contributing to the same project, will be filled at the earliest convenient date, but preferably not later than February 15, 2025. The employment at EPFL [2,3] will be initially for one year, renewable up to a maximum of four years, pending funding availability. 

Applicants must hold a PhD degree or expect to graduate before the start of employment, and be acquainted with experimental particle physics. They should send their application in a single pdf file including the following documents in this order:

   • motivation letter,

   • CV,

   • list of publications,

   • contact addresses of three people willing to write a reference letter.

The file should reach our secretariat (Mrs. Corinne Craman, recruiting.lphe@epfl.ch) by September 8, 2024. In addition, applicants should ask the references to send their letters to the same address by the same deadline. More information can be obtained from Prof. Radoslav Marchevski (Radoslav.Marchevski@epfl.ch).

Please note that another postdoctoral position focusing on LHCb data analysis and SciFi operations is also available at EPFL, with the same application deadline [4].

[1] https://www.epfl.ch/labs/lphe/

[2] https://www.epfl.ch/about/working/working-at-epfl/employment-conditions/

[3] https://www.epfl.ch/campus/services/human-resources/en/basic-starting-salary-of-doctoral-assistants-and-postdocs/

[4] https://inspirehep.net/jobs/2808778