Post-Doctoral Researcher

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Job Posting Title:Post-Doctoral Researcher
Position Type:Other Academic
Department:LSUAM Engineering - Chemical - Catalysis Materials (Craig Plaisance (00054576))
Work Location:3307 Patrick F. Taylor Hall
Pay Grade:Other Academic
Job Description:
The Postdoctoral Scholar will conduct computational research focused on the development and implementation of new electronic-structure methods in the Vienna Ab Initio Simulation Package (VASP). The primary project will involve development of an implicit adlayer model for representing high-coverage adsorbate environments in density functional theory calculations of heterogeneous catalytic systems. The scholar will implement, test, benchmark, and document new algorithms within VASP, including classical and quantum-chemical descriptions of interactions between implicit adsorbates and explicitly treated catalyst surfaces. The researcher will work under the supervision of the Principal Investigator and collaborate remotely with members of the research team on method development, validation, analysis, and dissemination of results.
35% - Computational method and software development. Develop and implement new algorithms in VASP for implicit treatment of adsorbate adlayers, including free-energy functionals, adsorbate-surface interactions, and numerical solution of the equilibrium adlayer density.
25% - Electronic-structure method development. Implement and evaluate quantum-chemical coupling between explicit VASP wave functions and implicit adsorbate orbitals, including modifications to electronic-structure and self-consistent-field algorithms as required.
20% - Extension, testing, and validation. Extend the methodology to increasingly complex adsorbates and catalytic systems; perform numerical testing, debugging, convergence studies, benchmarking, and validation against explicit DFT calculations and other reference data.
10% - Scientific analysis and collaboration. Analyze computational results and collaborate with the PI and other project researchers to evaluate model performance and guide continued method development. Participate in regular research meetings and communicate progress to collaborators.
10% - Ongoing training and professional development. Documentation and dissemination. Document software implementations and computational methods and contribute to preparation of manuscripts, presentations, reports, and other dissemination of research results. Ongoing training and professional development.
Minimum Qualifications
PhD in Chemical Engineering, Physics, Materials Science and Engineering, Computational Science, and Chemistry or equivalent
Experience with density functional theory or other electronic-structure methods; experience developing scientific computational software; proficiency with scientific programming in a compiled programming language; and experience working in Linux and high-performance computing environments.
Preferred Qualifications
PhD in Chemical Engineering, Physics, Materials Science and Engineering, Computational Science, and Chemistry or equivalent
Research experience in computational chemistry, condensed-matter physics, materials modeling, or related computational-method development.
Experience developing or modifying VASP or another large-scale electronic-structure code; experience with plane-wave density functional theory; proficiency in modern Fortran; experience with numerical optimization, iterative eigensolvers, self-consistent-field methods, or nonlinear equation solvers; experience with parallel high-performance computing; and knowledge of surface science, adsorption, or heterogeneous catalysis. Experience developing continuum, mean-field, or implicit-environment models is also desirable.
Additional Job Description:
Special Instructions:For any questions regarding the position, please contact Craig Plaisance (plaisance@lsu.edu) or (225) 578-6320
Skills Needed:
Preferred Skills:
Posting Date:October 12, 2026
Closing Date (Open Until Filled if No Date Specified):October 26, 2026
Additional Position Information:
Background Check - An offer of employment is contingent on a satisfactory pre-employment background check.
Benefits - LSU offers outstanding benefits to eligible employees and their dependents including health, life, dental, and vision insurance; flexible spending accounts; retirement options; various leave options; paid holidays; wellness benefits; tuition exemption for qualified positions; training and development opportunities; employee discounts; and more!
Positions approved to work outside the State of Louisiana shall be employed through Louisiana State University’s partner, nextSource Workforce Solutions, for Employer of Record Services including but not limited to employment, benefits, payroll, and tax compliance. Positions employed through Employer of Record Services will be offered benefits and retirement as applicable through their provider and will not be eligible for State of Louisiana benefits and retirement.
Essential Position (Y/N):
LSU is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
All candidates must have valid U.S. work authorization at the time of hire and maintain that valid work authorization throughout employment. Changes in laws, regulations, or government policies may impact the university’s ability to employ individuals in certain positions.
HCM Contact Information:
For questions or concerns related to updating your application with attachments (e.g., resumes, RS:17 documents), date of birth, or reactivating applications, please contact the LSU Human Resources Management Office at 225-578-8200 or email HR@lsu.edu. For questions or concerns regarding the status of your application or salary ranges, please contact the department using the information provided in the Special Instructions section of this job posting.