London Centre for Nanotechnology and the Centre for Materials Discovery
Academic Post in Materials Discovery and Crystal Growth
Further Particulars
Job Title: Senior Research Associate in Crystal Growth of Complex Materials
Job Reference: 1297824
Department: London Centre for Nanotechnology www.london-nano.com and the Centre for Materials Discovery
Reports to: The post holder will report to the Head of Department of the LCN (currently Professor Gabriel Aeppli) and the Director of the Centre for Materials Discovery (currently being appointed)
Grade: Grade 8
Salary Range: £37,012-£44,166 per annum (plus £2,806) London Allowance
Start Date: It is planned to hold interviews in December 2012 and for the successful candidates to take up the positions as soon as possible thereafter.
Summary of job function
The primary task of the person appointed will be to provide intellectual leadership and to conduct a world-class research programme in her/his area of research. The postholder will also perform the normal administrative duties expected of a member of academic staff as required by the LCN Director and Director of the Centre for Materials Discovery.
Main duties
Research:
The person appointed will be responsible for the initiation of new research areas; the participation, coordination or leadership of research consortia involving other academic staff within UCL and elsewhere including especially other London Colleges and the facilities on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus; becoming key partners in new national and international funded collaborations; and managing bids for such funding.
The postholder will:
Conduct a vigorous, high-level personal research programme, preferably in the following areas of materials discovery and crystal growth of materials with novel electronic properties; Generate external income to support this research programme; Supervise research students; project supervision and demonstrating Contributing where necessary to the assurance and enhancement of teaching quality; Manage research funds and supervise research staff as appropriate; Submit publications regularly to high-profile refereed journals and participate in national and international conferences; Foster links with industry which will benefit both research and teaching at UCL. Contribute to technology transfer activities through the development and protection of Intellectual Property (IP) and the pursuit of its exploitation through joint venture, licensing and spin-out routes as appropriate.
Administration:
Undertaking of administrative tasks within the two Departments as required, at faculty and/or institutional level within UCL; Attending, and where needed, leading relevant LCN/Materials Discovery committee meetings; Assisting with staff recruitment; Serve on Faculty, College and University committees as appropriate; Mentoring LCN/Materials Discovery staff as appropriate and promoting – both within and outside UCL – the work of the LCN; Complying with UCL and departmental policies on safety, equal opportunities, and other matters.
Other Duties:
Actively participate in learned society activities within the profession. Attend courses and conferences and engage in other activities associated with professional development. Comply with College and Departmental policies. The post-holder should carry out any other duties as are within the scope, spirit and purpose of a UCL academic post, as requested by the Heads of Departments.
The post-holder is expected to take responsibility for their work, duties and results. Please note that, within reason, the duties and role of the post-holder may be changed after appropriate consultation in response to changing organizational requirements. The post-holder is required to follow actively all UCL policies including Equal Opportunities policies.
Person Specification
Qualifications and training
The person appointed should have:
A PhD or equivalent qualification in a discipline relevant to Physics/Chemistry or Engineering(Essential) Demonstrated a clear track record of international research excellence in Materials Discovery and Crystal Growth of materials with novel electronic properties (Essential) A strong record of attracting funding to support their research programme together with experience of industrial collaborations. (Essential) A record of successful supervision and management of active research staff. (Essential) A demonstrated leadership in their research field, reflected by major publications, (Essential) Invited papers at international conferences, memberships or awards. (Essential) RCUK, RS or ERC Fellowships (Desirable)
Other requirements
A demonstrated record in the generation, protection and exploitation of Intellectual Property (IP)
Experience of working within international collaborative research projects
HOW TO APPLY
Further details about the post and the application procedure are available at www.london- nano.com.
In addition to the application form, you will need to upload the following documents:
CV (including the names and contact details of at least two referees who may be contacted prior to interview).
Two page (maximum) description of the research plan you propose to pursue at UCL, including how the proposed research would contribute to the Departments research profiles, their resource requirements and how these would be met, and the likely outcomes and timescales.
If you experience any problems please contact Denise Ottley ([email protected]) Informal enquiries about the position can be made to Miss Nipa Patel ([email protected])
Please do not send CV’s direct.
Regrettably, we are only able to contact candidates who are successful at the shortlisting stage. If you have not received an invitation to interview by the end of December your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.
Thank you for your interest in this position.
London Centre for Nanotechnology
The London Centre for Nanotechnology (LCN) is a UK-based, multidisciplinary research centre bridging the physical and biomedical sciences. It was conceived from the outset with a management structure allowing for a clear focus on exploitation and commercialisation. It brings together two world-leading institutions in nanotechnology, namely University College London and Imperial College London, in a unique operating model that accesses the combined skills of multiple departments, including medicine, chemistry, physics, electrical and electronic engineering, biochemical engineering, materials and earth sciences, and two leading business centres.
At UCL the LCN is a post-graduate research department with its own budget line, support staff and principal investigators. It has considerable scientific and technical achievements, as evidenced by publication, web and media presence, financial and human resources metrics. These achievements are more notable given the fact that the institute has been in existence less than three years (having been officially opened in November 2006). There are also large successes in knowledge transfer, including two start-up ventures, and post-graduate education. There are many opportunities for future achievement, particularly in health and planet care, systems and synthetic biology, and computer science.
The LCN building in Bloomsbury, opened officially in November 2006, is the only nanotechnology-focussed building at the heart of a major metropolis. The facility comprises a £14 million building (funded 75% by UCL and 25% by Imperial from SRIF allocations) and an investment in excess of £7 million in equipment (funded by grants and via SRIF rounds 1-3) and provides a complete range of interdisciplinary tools for bio- and non-bio nanotechnology. There has also been a considerable investment on the south Kensington site of Imperial College. Most notably, a £2.4 million grant from EPSRC jointly applied for by UCL and Imperial investigators enabled the procurement of a Titan scanning transmission electron microscope – the first of its kind in the UK and one of few in the world - now installed on the Imperial College site in South Kensington. Furthermore, in the autumn of 2008, a LCN branded lab-office suite was opened in the Bessemer complex of Imperial College.
Research Activities within the Department
Operating funds derive from a range of private and public sector sources, including the UK research councils, the EU, private companies such as STS/Sumitomo, and charities such as the Wolfson and Gatsby trusts. Nonetheless, UK government remains the most important funding source, and the LCN has been able to win large numbers of grants and contracts, with values ranging between several thousand and several million pounds. For example, the LCN won a Science and Innovation award (£5.6M) to develop new nanometrology capabilities – key for the engineering and quality assurance required for nanotechnology to achieve its commercial promise - on behalf of the UK.
The LCN is organised to deliver in the following areas:
Information Technology: The computing and communications needs of society continue to grow and have become increasingly complex. Current technology approaches are limited and a variety of new methods are being sought by LCN staff to circumvent these limitations, applying nanotechnology-driven paradigms such as quantum computing and spintronics.
Healthcare: Society’s need for healthcare continues to grow. Expenditure on healthcare in Europe is typically the largest item on a nation’s balance sheet. LCN is uniquely placed; through the vast bio-medical expertise it can access, to develop new paradigms in healthcare. Projects encompass specialised sensors and tools for drug discovery, as well as more fundamental research on cellular biophysics. Environment: Climate change is probably the single largest threat to society in the 21st century. The LCN uses its expertise ranging from biology to chemistry and materials science to conduct research in novel photovoltaic’s, new approaches to exploring current energy supplies, new materials for the nuclear industry and to store hydrogen efficiently at room temperature.
UCL Materials Discovery Centre
New UCL Centre for Materials Discovery linking fundamental chemistry, physics, engineering and biological principles to create new opportunities and developments in nanotechnology and biomedicine. The Centre will focus on Interactions with other interdisciplinary units including the London Centre for Nanotechnology, the Francis Crick Centre for Medical Research and Innovation and the Harwell Science & Technology Innovation Campus are expected. The centre will work collaboratively with other academic and interdisciplinary units throughout UCL and elsewhere, and play a pivotal role connecting scientists with various institutions and industry, strengthening UCL’s ability to take advantage of major UK and international funding opportunities in materials creation, discovery and development research.
About UCL
UCL is one of the UK's premier universities and is ranked in the world's top 10. It is a world-class research and teaching institution based in London whose staff and former students have included 20 Nobel Prize winners. Founded in 1826, it was the only university in England at that time which admitted students regardless of race or religion. UCL was also the first to admit women on equal terms with men. Today, UCL is an inspiring university in which to work and study and it continues to thrive on the diversity and creativity of its community.
UCL is in practice a university in its own right, although constitutionally a college within the federal University of London. With an annual turnover exceeding £ 700 million, it is financially and managerially independent of the University of London.
The UCL community
UCL currently employs approximately 8,000 staff and includes academic units as diverse as the Slade School of Fine Art, the Mullard Space Science Laboratory and the Institute of Child Health, which is associated with Great Ormond Street Hospital. In total, there are 54 Academic Departments and Institutes whose activities span the following: arts and humanities, social and historical sciences, law, architecture and the built environment, engineering sciences, mathematical and physical sciences, life and clinical sciences, and medicine. UCL's academic and research staff are a truly international community with more than a quarter coming from 84 countries outside the UK.
The UCL student community comprises 12,600 undergraduates and 8,500 graduate students, of whom over 30% come from 130 countries outside the UK. UCL currently offers 270 undergraduate programmes and more than 210 taught postgraduate programmes as well as the opportunity to carry out postgraduate research in all of its subjects. Approximately 40% of the student community is engaged in graduate studies, with about 37% of these graduate students pursuing research degrees.
Quality of UCL's teaching and research
Two measures of the current quality of UCL's teaching and research are the results of the external teaching quality assessment reviews and the periodic Research Assessment Exercise (RAE).
The results of the UK's latest research assessment exercise (RAE 2008) confirm the international excellence of UCL's research. The numbers of our researchers shown in RAE 2008 to be carrying out world-leading research place UCL among the top three universities in the UK. Of the 1800 researchers submitted by UCL for RAE 2008, 95% were deemed to have an international level of esteem. The range of UCL's research excellence was demonstrated by outstanding results in RAE 2008 in academic disciplines as diverse as biomedical sciences, architecture and the built environment, economics, law, philosophy and history
Another measure of UCL's research excellence has been its success in bidding for external competitive funds from the Joint Infrastructure Fund (JIF) and the Science Research Investment Fund (SRIF). With the addition of required matching funds, JIF and SRIF are allowing UCL to invest more than £ 350 million into state-of-the-art infrastructure for cutting-edge research and teaching programmes.
Equality
UCL is proud of its longstanding commitment to equality and to providing a learning, working and social environment in which the rights and dignity of its diverse members are respected. The Equalities website has everything you need to know about Equalities at UCL and some initiatives are highlighted below:
Sabbatical Leave following maternity - UCL provides one term of sabbatical leave without teaching commitments for research-active academics returning from maternity, adoption or long-term carer's leave. This support for returners enables staff to more quickly re-establish their research activity. Achievement of five Athena SWAN awards - for good employment practice for women working in science, engineering and technology (SET) in higher education and research. Tackling underrepresentation - UCL has two workforce equality targets. These targets are to increase the employment of black and minority ethnic (BME) support staff in grades 1-8 to 31% in line with the economically active BME population of Greater London; and to incrementally equalise the representation of men and women in senior grades (9 and 10) with the ultimate aim of a 50:50 split of women and men at this level. Encouraging flexibility - 82% of respondents to the 2009 UCL staff survey felt that their working time could be flexible. UCL's Work Life Balance policy gives employees the right to request a flexible working pattern.
Location and working environment
Based in Bloomsbury, UCL is a welcoming, inclusive university situated at the heart of one of the world's greatest cities.
UCL's central campus is within easy reach of Euston, Kings Cross and Marylebone mainline stations, the new Eurostar terminal at St. Pancras and the following Underground stations - Euston Square, Warren Street, Goodge Street and Russell Square. Road connections to the M1 and M40 motorways give easy access to the north and west road networks. There are also good public transport links to Heathrow airport.