UX Designer

About Us

Diamond Light Source is the UK’s national synchrotron; a huge scientific facility designed to produce very intense beams of X-rays, infrared, and ultraviolet light. Our scientists use the light to study a vast range of subject matter, from new medicines and treatments for disease to innovative engineering and cutting-edge technology.

Diamond is one of the most advanced scientific facilities in the world, and its pioneering capabilities and talented staff are helping to keep the UK at the forefront of scientific research, to maintain this world-leading position Diamond has embarked upon a major upgrade of the facility. The upgrade, Diamond-II, is a programme that will deliver a new machine and 3 new “flagship” beamlines with a comprehensive series of upgrades to optics, detectors, sample environments, sample delivery capabilities and computing. The user experience will be further enhanced through access to integrated and correlative methods as well as broad application of automation in both instrumentation and analysis. Diamond-II will be transformative in both spatial resolution and throughput and will offer users streamlined access to enhanced instruments for life and physical sciences.

About the Scientific Software, Controls and Computation Department

The Scientific Software Controls and Computation (SSCC) department comprises a number of, predominantly software, groups that support the three electron accelerators, 33 photon beamlines and suite of electron microscopes that collectively constitute the Diamond facility. The software architecture is complex and requires careful management and agility. To deliver the infrastructure required, SSCC operates two data centres and a large estate of IT systems and undertakes development and support of software applications and control systems. Software developed for science can change in unpredictable ways, with algorithms invented and reinvented, and SSCC is flexible and able to adapt to changing needs.

SSCC’s software and computing systems facilitate processes from when a “Diamond user” applies to the User Office for beam time, through to pre-experiment planning, on to the life cycle of conducting the experiment and to post-experimental analysis. The software extends from the control of the instruments, managing the experiment and the data analysis through to the deposition of the resulting data and metadata into the data archive and catalogue. It supports the transfer of data to the home institute and the capturing of publication information.

As part of the Diamond-II programme, SSCC is modernising the systems that comprise the beamline software stack. This modernisation includes the migration to web UIs for all user facing software services. The UI vision is to present Diamond users with a web portal that provides intuitive access to the services that allow beam time scheduling, experiment configuration, execution and monitoring, and data management and processing.

About the Role

We now have an opportunity for a UX Designer within SSCC. The successful candidate will join a small UX team with the responsibility of:

• Interfacing with beamline staff and facility users to maintain an ongoing assessment of the usability of the machine and beamline software in order to continuously improve this.
• Developing, maintaining and extending a UI Design System that will that improve Diamond stakeholder collaboration on UI design, enhance UI development efficiency, facilitate UI consistency, and increase scalability.
• Running UX workshops to gather requirements for new UIs being developed and drive improvements to existing UIs.
• Designing low and high-fidelity wireframes for significant new UI developments, including those for the 3 new Diamond-II flagship beamlines.
• Providing oversight, guidance and support on the design and development of UIs across the full suite of Diamond software services and applications.

As a UX Designer at Diamond you will collaborate with SSCC’s software development teams and Diamond’s machine operators and beamline scientists. You will be required to interact with machine operators and scientists, using industry standard UX techniques, and translate their specifications for machine operation and scientific capabilities into UI designs that allow external users and Diamond staff to achieve their goals intuitively and efficiently. You will develop standard UX artefacts to justify and document design decisions. You will ensure that accessibility is addressed in the Design System and in specific UI designs.

About You

• You will be qualified to degree level in a human behaviour related field (human-computer interaction, psychology, social science, information science, etc) or a STEM subject with demonstrated experience of UX design at an equivalent level.
• You will have experience of working with key senior stakeholders to determine the UX requirements for software products. This will involve storytelling, critiquing, facilitating and presenting. You will demonstrate an ability to conduct appropriate research to gain qualitative and quantitative user research insight, applying standard industry methods such as usability testing, workshops, surveys, user interviews, card sorting, tree testing, A/B testing, personas and user journeys, and documenting research outputs.
• You will also have experience of developing low and high-fidelity wireframes and wireframe maps.
• You should be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment and display good communication, presentation, interpersonal, influencing and analytical skills, with a personal interest or experience in science.

Benefits

Diamond offers an exceptional benefits package to support staff in achieving a positive work/life balance. This includes 26 days annual leave plus Christmas closure, public holidays, 2 annual volunteering days and flexible working hours. We also offer an excellent defined benefit pension scheme. Staff also have access to a range of amenities on site including a nursery, cafes, a restaurant and sports and leisure facilities. A relocation allowance may also be available where applicable.

To Apply

Please use the online application process to apply and tell us why you believe you are suitable for this role. 

The closing date for applications is 14th September 2025, however, we encourage early applications as some candidates may be interviewed before this date.