Research Fellow (110588-0625)

Duration: Fixed Term Contract for 1 year

About the Role  

For informal enquiries, please contact Dr Hannes Houck (Royal Society University Research Fellow) hannes.houck@warwick.ac.uk

The Photochemistry for Materials group is looking for an enthusiastic postdoctoral research fellow to join our team under the supervision of Dr Hannes Houck at the University of Warwick.

Our research is situated at the interface of organic synthesis, photochemistry and polymer science with the overarching ambition to meticulously design novel chemical building blocks and finetune their reactivity to design materials with advanced functionality and improved sustainability. Specifically, we develop small molecule photoreactions that allow for the efficient formation of covalently bound reaction products under (visible) light irradiation. Importantly, the thus formed adducts display subsequent reactivity that can be activated on-demand to introduce smart and responsive behaviour into materials, including (bio)degradation and closed-loop recyclability.

Applications are invited to join our team on a 12-month post-doctoral research project funded by The Royal Society. In this role, you will be investigating new photochemistry platforms for covalent bond (re)formation under visible light irradiation, whereby the resulting photoadducts display subsequent reactivity including reversion and/or degradation. You will be optimising the photochemical bonding reactivity through a detailed photophysical understanding of the chromophores and pioneer novel structural analogues applicable to macromolecular applications.

About You  

We are looking to recruit a highly motivated person with creative ideas and a passion for science, with expertise in organic synthesis, photochemical reactions (e.g. photocycloadditions) and photophysical chemistry. You must have experience in small molecule organic photochemistry and molecular characterisation methods (e.g. nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), Fourier-transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), mass spectrometry, gas-chromatography (GC) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)). Experience in continuous photo-flow synthesis, material characterisation, or light-based additive manufacturing is desirable. The project involves several challenging research aspects and provides an opportunity to use your expertise and develop new skills.

You should be able to work both independently and with other team members and be able to inspire and lead junior researchers (PhD, MChem, MSc) working alongside your project. You are expected to have excellent interpersonal and communication skills and experience of presenting your work to both national and international audiences. You will have the opportunity to engage with the wider research community and departmental activities, such as outreach or teaching.

You should hold (or be near completion of) a PhD or equivalent in a relevant scientific discipline (e.g. chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or other science). If you have not yet been awarded your PhD but are near submission or have recently submitted your PhD, any offers of employment will be made as Research Assistant on level 5 of the University grade structure. Upon successful award of your PhD and evidence of this fact, you will be promoted to Research Fellow on the first point of the level 6 of the University grade structure.

For further information regarding the skills required for this role please see the personal specification section of the  job description, click the 'Apply' button above. 

Full details of the duties and selection criteria for this role can be found in the vacancy advert on the University of Warwick's jobs pages. You will be routed to this when you click on the 'Apply' button.