The Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMMIC) will extend and develop our approach to provide a supercluster of business-university innovation, through a key focus on advanced materials, additive manufacturing and sustainable development, including surface engineering, metamaterials and materials for ‘green' energy. We will address Greater Manchester's need for rapid development and rollout of sustainable solutions for a wide range of applications through providing a one port of call for innovation-ready businesses to access technological expertise and capacity building to embed and exploit these technologies for long-term growth. AMMIC will contribute to net zero, develop industry digital skills, improve efficiencies, and create increased international competitiveness in GM.
AMMIC brings together world leading research facilities and expertise to stimulate new investment in research and development (R&D) to address regional and national materials and manufacturing challenges. The AMMIC team will be undertaking a series of projects with industrial collaborators in the areas of:
- materials synthesis (e.g. PVD techniques, Metamaterials, etc.);
- digitalisation of processes through real-time data acquisition and analytics;
- component fabrication (additive manufacturing);
- characterisation (e.g. SEM, EDX, XRD, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, nanoindentation, AFM, etc.);
- and testing, e.g. wear testing, corrosion testing, performance and durability testing.
About the role:
AMMIC is inviting ambitious and talented individuals with a background in materials science/engineering/physics to apply to join our multidisciplinary research team as a Postdoctoral Research Associate (PDRA), until 30th September 2028. The successful candidate will work within the Surface Engineering Laboratory at Manchester Metropolitan University. There will also be opportunities to work at our academic and industrial partners' facilities. The Surface Engineering Lab is equipped with state-of-the-art thin film deposition systems (magnetron sputtering), ranging from lab-scale to pilot production scale. We undertake the development of new functional films, characterisation of film properties and the optimisation of deposition processes. The Surface Engineering lab is co-located with the Manchester Fuel Cell Innovation Centre and is home to electrochemists, materials scientists and engineers who use state-of-the-art electrochemical techniques to investigate materials and diagnostic tools for energy conversion and storage technologies.
As the PDRA, you will:
- Undertake research that accelerates innovation for our industrial partners, specifically produce, characterise and test materials and components and measure the performance and durability of materials and components relevant to our collaborators.
- Be proficient in the application of relevant equipment, software and techniques such as component and material fabrication (specifically via PVD techniques), materials characterisation (e.g. SEM, EDX, XRD, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, AFM, etc.), tribological testing, corrosion testing, and assessment of performance and durability data.
About You:
To succeed as the PDRA, you should;
- Hold a PhD in materials science, materials engineering or related discipline.
- Possess experience of industrial working practices in the advanced materials sector, either through collaborative research projects or direct employment.
- Have the ability to plan and prioritise research, identify research objectives, work collaboratively with project partners from academia and industry to deliver project outcomes.
- Have the ability to present results and findings, in writing and orally, to diverse audiences.
- Be a team-oriented researcher who is highly motivated and excited by materials and technology developments in the advanced materials and surface engineering field.
- Expertise in physical vapour deposition is desirable.
For more information and to apply visit https://manmetjobs.mmu.ac.uk/jobs/vacancy/postdoctoral-research-associate-in-advanced-materials--7950-manchester-all-saints-campus/7893/description/
