Postdoctoral position with specialization in microwave power vacuum tube development - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

Are you interested in working with microwave power, with the support of competent and friendly colleagues in an international environment? Are you looking for an employer that invests in sustainable employeeship and offers safe, favourable working conditions? We welcome you to apply for a post doctor position with specialization in microwave power vacuum tube development at Uppsala University.

The research conducted at the Department of Physics and Astronomy encompasses a wide range of physics topics, distributed over ten divisions. The department is located in the Ångström laboratory and employs nearly 400 people, 125 of whom are doctoral students. It offers a broad physics curriculum to undergraduate and graduate students, participation in nationally and internationally leading projects for researchers, and opportunities for partnership with industry and various outreach activities. Read more at www.physics.uu.se

The Department of Physics and Astronomy is hosting the FREIA Division responsible for the FREIA Laboratory, where research is performed towards future particle accelerators and instrumentation. The FREIA laboratory operates complex equipment such as superconducting cryostats and microwave equipment for developing and testing particle accelerator instrumentation. Current projects are related to the: European Spallation Source (ESS), MAX IV Laboratory, High Luminosity upgrade of the LHC at CERN, development of free-electron lasers, and development of a compact X-ray laser and instrumentation in Uppsala.

The FREIA Laboratory is engaged in the development of new RF/MW high power amplifiers based on solid state transistors for particle accelerators. Several projects at FREIA are related to the development of solid-state power amplifier technology for particle accelerator facilities such as ESS, CERN and SCK-CEN.

Research is also pursued in microwave power vacuum tube applications which plays a pivotal role in various fields, including communication, radar systems, particle accelerators, and scientific research. Microwave power vacuum tubes, such as klystrons, magnetrons, and traveling wave tubes (TWTs), are essential components in high-power microwave systems. These devices are crucial for generating and amplifying microwave power, making them indispensable in a wide range of applications. To harness these advantages, further development in compact electron devices is required.

Project description

This position is backed by the EU project I.FAST, which seeks to develop an efficient, compact, and affordable microwave power generation for particle accelerator applications. This initiative involves the development of a cross-field amplifier (CFA), a high-power microwave vacuum tube. The successful candidate will contribute to our efforts in advancing the field of microwave power vacuum tubes by designing, simulating, prototyping, and testing novel microwave systems for e.g. powering accelerators and other industrial applications.

Duties

• Collaborate with a cross-functional team to develop innovative solutions for enhancing high power microwave vacuum tube performance and energy efficiency.
• Creating theoretical models for vacuum tube amplifier to calculate design parameters and assess beam-wave interaction efficiency.
• Lead experimental efforts in the fabrication, assembly, and testing; including the development/assessment of secondary emission cathodes, and measuring the amplifiers.
• Analyze the experimental data and actively participate in writing scientific publications.
• Conduct feasibility studies: leading from a conceptual design to a final demonstrator.
• Present findings at conferences, workshops, and seminars to share knowledge and engage with the global scientific community.
• Contribute to the writing of proposals for research grants.

Requirements
PhD degree in physics or electrical engineering or a foreign degree equivalent to a PhD degree in physics or electrical engineering. The degree needs to be obtained by the time of the decision of employment. Those who have obtained a PhD degree three years prior to the application deadline are primarily considered for the employment. The starting point of the three-year frame period is the application deadline. Due to special circumstances, the degree may have been obtained earlier. The three-year period can be extended due to circumstances such as sick leave, parental leave, duties in labour unions, etc.

Very good oral and written proficiency in English, as well as the capacity to work both independently and in a team, are requirements.

Additional qualifications

The candidate should preferably have experience with the use of a vector network analyzer (VNA), software for calculating EM-fields like HFSS, CST, particle in cell (PIC) codes or similar. It is favorable to demonstrate the ability to apply for research grants from external sources. The candidate should have a proven experience with the development of high-power vacuum tube amplifiers, demonstrated through conference and journal papers. Proven experience with the fabrication of the high-power vacuum components is preferred.

Applications could be written in Swedish or English and should include a brief description of research interests and relevant experience, CV, PhD diploma, copies of other certificates and diplomas, a link to the PhD thesis, and other documents which the applicant wishes to refer to. The applicant is encouraged to provide names and contact details of referees and/or attach recommendation letters.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position of two years according to central collective agreement.  Full time position. Starting date 2024-01-01. Placement: Uppsala

For further information about the position, please contact: 
Dragos Dancila, e-mail: dragos.dancila@angstrom.uu.se, phone +46 72 366 31 80

Please submit your application by 29 December 2023, UFV-PA 2023/4334.

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