R. D. James seeks an outstanding postdoc to work in the Department of Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics at The University of Minnesota (Twin Cities campus) to search for new highly reversible transforming materials, guided by recent theoretical results on the relationship between special values of the lattice parameters and hysteresis (James and Zhang, A way to search for multiferroic materials with 'unlikely' combinations of physical properties, in Magnetism and Structure in Functional Materials (ed., Lluis Manosa, Antoni Planes, Avadh Saxena), Springer Series in Materials Science, vol. 79, Springer-Verlag (2005)). This research is funded by a the new MURI project: Materials on the Brink: Unprecedented Transforming Materials. The position offers an unusual opportunity for interdisciplinary collaboration.
The successful candidate will have experience in the synthesis of transforming materials, especially shape memory and related alloys. It is essential that the candidate be familiar with arc melting and specimen preparation of these alloys and especially accurate x-ray measurements of lattice parameters. In addition, familiarity with DSC methods, methods of microscopy, and characterization tools for transforming materials is desirable. A plus, but not a necessity, would be some knowledge of the nonlinear theory of martensitic phase transformations, including recent theoretical ideas on the origins of hysteresis and methods of calculating energy minimizing microstructures. A Ph.D. at the start date is required. Questions about the position or duties can be directed to R.D. James, james@aem.umn.edu.
The position is for a one year appointment with the possibility of renewal for two more years and is available immediately. Interested individuals should go to https://employment.umn.edu/ and search for job no. 156489, indicating also the position title given above.
The University of Minnesota is an EOE/AA employer and educator.
Posting Date 3/12/07