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PREP Graduate Research Assistant Position at NIST in the Spin Electronics Group under the Applied Physics Division (PREP0003284)

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Professional Research Experience Program (PREP). NIST recognizes that its research staff may wish to collaborate with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest thus requires that such institutions must be the recipient of a PREP award. The PREP program requires staff from a wide range of backgrounds to work on scientific research in many areas. Employees in this position will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration.


The Professional Research Experience Program (PREP) is a special partnership between the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado Boulder. PREP provides research opportunities to CU undergraduate and graduate students, as well as researchers with a Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in NIST labs to gain research experience alongside NIST scientists.

Research Location: 

At NIST in the Spin Electronics Group under the Applied Physics Division.

Summary of the Position: 

The position focuses on developing advanced scanning ferromagnetic pi-state Josephson junction metrology for superconducting electronics. A broad set of activities are expected, ranging from research and development of ferromagnetic pi-state Josephson junctions, to developing and modeling flux trapping mitigation techniques for ferromagnetic Josephson junctions for use in superconducting electronics. Our group has an extensive background in ferromagnetic Josephson junction development, microwave measurement metrology of nano-scale devices, as well as neuromorphic superconducting circuit design, fabrication, and measurement. The successful candidate will have previous research experience with spintronics and sputter deposition techniques. The candidate will have opportunities to fabrication and characterize ferromagnetic pi-state Josephson junctions with new materials. In addition, there will be opportunities to develop measurement techniques to characterize large numbers of these devices. In this project the research assistant will work closely with NIST staff, but the Associate must be self-motivated in designing and executing measurements, developing robust data analysis methods with proper statistical validation, and reporting these results to the group and via publication(s).

Key responsibilities: 

  • Using and maintaining multi-gun sputter deposition systems.
  • Developing and performing high-speed (> 10 GHz) electronic measurements to characterize superconducting electronic circuit performance.
  • Simulating, designing, fabricating, and testing ferromagnetic pi-state Josephson junctions using our extensive cleanroom facilities.
  • Presenting results at internal meetings, and occasional meeting and at scientific conferences.
  • Ensuring that results, protocols, software, and documentation have been archived or otherwise transmitted to the larger organization.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • Applicants must be enrolled full-time at the University of Colorado Boulder master’s degree or doctoral degree program in physics, mathematics, engineering, or closely related program.
  • Must currently possess a 3.0 GPA or higher.
  • Must be a degree seeking student through CU Boulder

Preferred qualifications: 

  • In a Physics or Electrical Engineering graduate program at the University of Colorado Boulder.
  • Experience with sputter deposition systems.
  • Experience with ferromagnetic or spintronic measurements such as magneto-optic Kerr effect measurements.
  • Familiarity with scripting languages including Python.
  • Strong oral and written communications skills.

Length of Term (if applicable):

  • Start Date: 5/22/25
  • End Date: 5/21/27

Salary (contract pay format): 

  • Pre-comps: $3,041 per month
  • Post-comps: $3,202 per month

Benefits: 

  • Graduate Research Assistant contract pay based on pre-comps/post-comps rate.
     
  • Tuition, fees, and insurance paid for by PREP during the academic year while in PREP.

 

If interested, please send your resume/CV to Lisa Valencia at recruitprep@colorado.edu. The finalist will be required to submit their resume/CV, transcript, one letter of recommendation, and the PREP application.


Privacy Act Statement

Authority: 15 U.S.C. § 278g-1(e)(1) and (e)(3) and 15 U.S.C. § 272(b) and (c)


Purpose: The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) hosts the Professional Research Experience Program (PREP) which is designed to provide valuable laboratory experience and financial assistance to undergraduates, post-bachelor’s degree holders, graduate students, master’s degree holders, postdocs, and faculty.


PREP is a 5-year cooperative agreement between NIST laboratories and participating PREP Universities to establish a collaborative research relationship between NIST and U.S. institutions of higher education in the following disciplines including (but may not be limited to) biochemistry, biological sciences, chemistry, computer science, engineering, electronics, materials science, mathematics, nanoscale science, neutron science, physical science, physics, and statistics. This collection of information is needed to facilitate administrative functions of the PREP Program.


Routine Uses: NIST will use the information collected to perform the requisite reviews of the applications to determine eligibility, and to meet programmatic requirements. Disclosure of this information is also subject to all the published routine uses as identified in the Privacy Act System of Records Notices: NIST-1: NIST Associates.


Disclosure: Furnishing this information is voluntary. When you submit the form, you are indicating your voluntary consent for NIST to use of the information you submit for the purpose stated.