PhD opening - "THE BEHAVIOR OF VOLATILES DURING THE GIANT IMPACT"

One PhD opening is available for the IMPACT ERC project based in Lyon, France, starting with September 1^st, 2018. IMPACT aims to retrace the thermodynamic path of the condensation of the protolunar disk, to bring physical and chemical constraints on the impact model, and to characterize the formation of the Moon and of the Earth.

The position is to study the behavior of volatile-rich systems during the Giant Impact. Immediately after the impact, the largest parts of both the proto-Earth and the impactor melted and vaporized. They accumulated into a large protolunar disk. Everything inside the Roche radius fell down and condensed to form the early Earth. The outer parts partly fell onto the Earth, partly condensed to form the moon and partly were lost to space.

The aim of the doctoral work is to determine the physical properties and the chemical behavior of the corresponding mineral melts and fluids at conditions characteristic to the Giant Impact. For this, the successful candidate will use ab initio molecular-dynamics simulations. He/she will compute the volatile-mineral solubility and the equations of state of the liquid, gas and supercritical states, will the position of the supercritical points and/or surfaces, will determine the chemical speciation in the fluids, and will predict isotope partitioning factors.

A master degree in Earth sciences, solid-state physics and/or chemistry or materials science is preferred. Computing skills are highly appreciated. Proficiency in written and spoken English is mandatory. He/she will be financed and be part of the Impact group funded by the European Research Council (a bit of information is at: https://moonimpact.eu/). The group is hosted in the brand new offices of the Centre Blaise Pascal, the broad numerical and computing center at the Ecole Normale Superieure de Lyon, which is a small but elite institution. The PhD program in France takes 36 months.

The application should be adressed to Dr. Razvan Caracas (razvan.caracas@ens-lyon.fr). The package will include CV, names of references, motivation letter, including specific interests and prior experience in areas related to mineral physics. Applications will be considered until the position is filled. A competitive package of salary and employee benefits is offered.

Please mention in your application the website or mailing list where you found the offer and the reference PhD4impact.