King's College London

About us

The role will take place within the Attosecond Quantum Physics Laboratory team, based in the Photonics & Nanotechnology group in the Physics Department and the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences. AQPL is an open and inclusive team researching strong-field physics and ultrafast laser science, through both theoretical and experimental approaches. 

About the role

We are looking for a postdoctoral research associate to conduct theoretical research on attosecond and strong-field phenomena, using analytical approaches to study the response of atomic systems to high-intensity, strongly-polychromatic laser pulses. 

The candidate will extend our group’s existing research on implementing methods from Picard-Lefschetz theory into attosecond science: improving and extending our existing implementations, as well as applying them to existing and novel problem areas; the candidate will be expected to have existing expertise in the group’s existing activities. 

The candidate will report to Dr Emilio Pisanty, and the role will be conducted within the topic ‘Caustics and catastrophes in strong-field physics’, under the umbrella of the project ‘New frontiers of strong-field physics: vortices, catastrophes, and quantum electrodynamics’. 

This is a full time post, and you will be offered a fixed term contract until  31/03/2027.  

Research staff at King’s are entitled to at least 10 days per year (pro-rata) for professional development. This entitlement, from the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers, applies to Postdocs, Research Assistants, Research and Teaching Technicians, Teaching Fellows and AEP equivalent up to and including grade 7. Visit the Centre for Research Staff Development for more information. 

About you

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1.       PhD awarded, or near completion*, in Physics or related areas 

2.       Extensive expertise on strong-field physics, catastrophe theory, and asymptotic approximation methods, in both analytical and numerical approaches 

3.       To have developed a creative and distinctive research vision within the field, which complements existing research within the department 

4.       Good presentational, organisational, and administrative skills, highly effective oral and written communication skills 

5.       Experience with theoretical atomic, molecular and optical physics

Desirable criteria

1.       Experience in applying for research funding, including financial support for research collaborations and conference attendance. 

2.       Experience in mentoring junior members of a research team. 

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the page. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

* Please note that this is a PhD level role but candidates who have submitted their thesis and are awaiting award of their PhDs will be considered. In these circumstances the appointment will be made at Grade 5, spine point 30 with the title of Research Assistant. Upon confirmation of the award of the PhD, the job title will become Research Associate and the salary will increase to Grade 6. 

Further Information

At King’s, we believe that the diversity of our community and a culture that is welcoming, open, inclusive and collaborative, are great strengths of the university.

The Equality Act of 2010 protects the rights of our students and staff and provides a framework to fulfil our duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and in addition, to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between those who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. At times, this will include balancing rights and beliefs that can feel in tension.

We are committed to free speech and to academic freedom, believing that our foundational purpose as a university, is to create spaces where a wide range of ideas, including ideas that are controversial, can be discussed and debated, and where members of our community can express lawful views without fear of intimidation, harassment or discrimination.

When engaging in the robust exchange of ideas, we ask that our community is mindful of our Dignity at King’s guidance.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the person specification section of the job description. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

We reserve the right to close adverts early due to the volume of applications we receive. While the closing date may change, all adverts will close at 23:59 to allow sufficient time for applications to be submitted on that day.

We encourage you to apply at the earliest opportunity to avoid disappointment as once we have closed a vacancy you will be unable to submit your application.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages. Interviews are due to be held in Feb.