Postdoctoral Appointee

About the Role

This is a temporary postdoctoral position for up to one year, with potential for renewal up to five additional years. The PhD must have been conferred within five years prior to employment.

About Sandia

Sandia National Laboratories is a premier science and engineering laboratory focused on national security and technology innovation.

What Your Job Will Be Like

Sandia's Experimental Aerosciences Department is seeking a Postdoctoral Appointee to conduct basic and applied research on multiphase shock interactions and hypersonic flow phenomena related to national security. You will work primarily in facilities such as the Trisonic Wind Tunnel, Hypersonic Wind Tunnel, Hypersonic Shock Tunnel, and the Multiphase Shock Tube. You will be mentored by staff researchers and collaborate with test engineers and technologists.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop experiments and apply diagnostic techniques to explore hypersonic flow, gas opacity, high-enthalpy shock effects, and/or reactive flow shock-boundary layer interactions.
• Develop data-driven models from experimental results and collaborate with engineers to compare experimental data with modern computational models.
• Publish research in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Present research to team members and the broader scientific community.

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Earned or pursuing a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related engineering field.
• Ph.D. requirements must be completed before starting at Sandia.
• Excellent scientific writing and presentation skills, demonstrated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.
• Ability to acquire and maintain a DOE L security clearance.
• US Citizenship is required.

Qualifications We Desire

• Experience with compressible fluid mechanics.
• Experience applying nonintrusive optical diagnostics such as high-speed schlieren, focused laser differential interferometry (FLDI), ultra-fast laser-based spectroscopy, particle image velocimetry (PIV), laser absorption spectroscopy (LAS).
• Experience with surface sensor measurements including high-frequency pressure, shear stress, heat flux, infrared thermography, and DAQ systems.
• Experience with data analysis techniques such as signal processing, image analysis, and data assimilation techniques.
• Thorough knowledge and applied experience with scientific and engineering methods and standards for ethical conduct of research.
• Ability to interact well with technical workers with diverse backgrounds.
• Previous experience demonstrating an ability to work safely and efficiently in a fast-paced research laboratory.

About Our Team

The Experimental Aerosciences Department in Albuquerque, New Mexico, conducts R&D and technology applications in aerodynamics, aerothermodynamics, compressible fluid mechanics, and flight dynamics, supporting national security.

Security Clearance

Applicants must be able to obtain and maintain a DOE L-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship.