Research Associate in Femtosecond Serial X-ray Crystallography

Location: South Kensington Campus

About the role:

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced Research Associates to join the research group of Professor Jasper van Thor in order to conduct ultrafast X-ray crystallography experiments. Working at X-ray Free Electron laser (XFEL) facilities the postdoc project will involve execution of ultrafast laser induced pump-probe crystallography experiment and to subsequently work on the crystallographic analysis of recorded time resolved data sets. 

You will be expected to carry out research programmes in ultrafast X-ray crystallography, undertake project management and/or supervise multi-disciplinary teams. You will also be expected to submit publications to refereed journals.

What you would be doing:

You will be responsible for managing and leading the technical aspects of XFEL beamtime experiments. Your primary tasks will include the management and design of the experiments as well as leading the crystallographic data processing. You will collaborate with team members of the van Thor group as well as external collaborators on additional spectroscopy and theory components of ultrafast structural dynamics investigation. You will be responsible for reporting the work in written form in order to publish in peer reviewed journals.

You will take the initiative in planning research and identifying and developing suitable techniques, and apparatus, for the collection and analysis of data.

You will be responsible for writing reports for submission to research sponsors, presenting findings to colleagues and at conferences and submitting publications to refereed journals. You will actively direct the work of small research teams and provide guidance to staff and students.

What we are looking for:

You should hold a PhD (or equivalent) in biochemistry, physics, materials or chemistry with detailed training in X-ray crystallography. You have advanced training and knowledge of crystallography theory and computational methodology. You have practical experience within a research environment and you can demonstrate a publication track record in relevant and refereed journals.

You should have experience working at either XFEL or synchrotron beamline stations to conduct X-ray crystallography. You should have extensive experience with computational techniques for crystallographic data reduction, processing, refinement and analysis.

What we can offer you:

• The opportunity to continue your career at a world-leading institution and be part of our mission to continue science for humanity.
• Grow your career: gain access to Imperial’s sector-leading dedicated career support for researchers as well as opportunities for promotion and progression.
• Sector-leading salary and remuneration package (including 41 days off a year and generous pension schemes).
• Be part of a diverse, inclusive and collaborative work culture with various staff networks and resources to support your personal and professional wellbeing.

Further Information

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week).

Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as Research Assistant within the salary range.

The start date is 01 August 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.

This role is for a fixed-term contract until 24 January 2028 with possibility of extension for a further 6 months.

If you require any further details about the role, please contact: Professor Jasper van Thor: j.vanthor@imperial.ac.uk

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