Post-doc in THz Wave Compact Electron Acceleration

Localization: iTEOX / IJCLab, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay, France

Duration : 24 mois +12 mois extension

Starting : March 31, 2023

Start of the application process : November 1, 2022

Application deadline: January 13, 2023

Contacts: Christelle Bruni (bruni@ijclab.in2p3.fr) / Thomas Oksenhendler (thomas@iteox.com)

Gross salary per year including bonuses: depends on seniority and CV > 32k€.

Description

Missions

Iteox is looking for highly motivated candidates for a post-doctoral position associated with the TWAC project (https://twac.ijclab.in2p3.fr/en/home/) coordinated by the CNRS and funded by the Innovation Council of Europe (EIC pathfinder). The project, which started this year, aims at a major breakthrough in the search for a light, compact, very high energy gradient accelerator between radio frequency-based accelerators and laser plasma accelerators. The objective of the project is to experimentally demonstrate energy gains in excess of 100 MeV/m with a view to industrial valorization, particularly in the health sector.

Activities

The project aims at a major breakthrough in compact electron accelerators. To this end, the post-doctoral fellow will be integrated into the TWAC project to advance the various research issues. The activity will be both experimental and theoretical. The central facility of the project consists of a particle accelerator and a power laser. Synchronization aspects at the femtosecond scale, transport of the different paths of the femtosecond laser, and adjustment of the charged particle beam parameters also in the femtosecond range will be recurrent activities. Finally, the transverse alignment of the different optical and mechanical components of the optical paths, of the accelerator equipment on the particle beam will also be a challenge that requires numerical developments for on-line analysis. The post-doctoral student will actively participate in the project experiment by preparing the experimental conditions, analyzing the data and comparing them with numerical and analytical simulation tools. The TWAC collaborators will also participate in the experimental sessions. Finally, the post-doc will valorize his research work by participating in conferences and publishing his results in scientific journals. A monitoring will be done on the patentable parts of the project.

Required skills

The candidate must have a PhD in physics. The candidate should have a strong interest in experimentation. Competence in charged particle beam dynamics or pulsed lasers will be a significant advantage; in particular in photoinjectors, or CPA chains based on Ti:Sa. Knowledge of nonlinear optics, nonlinear dynamics of charged particles, collective effects will be an asset.

Experience in programming may be a positive asset. The candidate must be able to communicate in English. We encourage women and young PhD students to apply.

The post-doctoral fellowship is for a period of two years, renewable for one year, starting between January and April 2023. The deadline for sending CVs, cover letters and a list of referees is January 31, 2023.

Context

The company ITEOX will be the employer of the CDD. The post-doctoral student will be hosted at the IJClab laboratory in order to conduct the experiments and benefit from both the supervision of ITEOX and of confirmed CNRS researchers at the IJClab laboratory. The post-doc will benefit from the immersion in the academic and entrepreneurial environment. In addition, the project is immersed in a European context which will lead the post-doc to carry out missions to the different partners to discuss scientific issues, and participate in experimental sessions on power lasers (University of Pecs in Hungary, PhLAM laboratory in France) and accelerators (Desy in Germany).