Physics PhD - Quantum Computing Expert

Obsidian; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 96,000 - 165,000; Part time

Job summary

Mercor is hiring PhD and Master's scientists to author AI evaluation tasks (Sci Code). You will author original, executable research problems that today's frontier models cannot solve.

In this six-week, part-time role (20+ hours/week), you will source material, write prompts, build grading criteria, and calibrate against frontier models to ensure the tasks are challenging and robust. Start date is immediate, with a collaborative, research-oriented environment.

Qualifications

• PhD in physics, applied physics, or a closely related field.
• Demonstrated depth in at least two of: condensed matter, optics, quantum information/computing, computational physics, astrophysics, particle physics.
• Working proficiency in Python, R, or another relevant programming language for scientific computing.
• Comfortable with Git/GitHub and running code in Docker — authoring runs through a pull-request workflow with automated quality checks.
• Publications in peer-reviewed journals (preferred).
• Prior scientific software or research engineering experience (preferred).

Responsibilities

• Source your own material: a published paper, a Kaggle dataset, an open-source repository, or a scenario you design.
• Write scientific prompts based on the input.
• Build the grading criteria that define a correct answer.
• Calibrate against frontier models — a task ships only when strong models fail it more often than they succeed.

Skills

Python

R

Git/GitHub

Docker

Scientific computing

Education

PhD in physics

Tools

Docker

Git

Job description

Mercor is hiring PhD and Master's scientists to author AI evaluation tasks (Sci Code)

Mercor is partnering with leading AI labs on a new benchmark for scientific computing. You will author original, executable research problems that today's frontier models cannot solve.

Domains — depth required in at least two subdomains (with a coding focus)

• Physics — condensed matter, optics, quantum information/computing, computational physics, astrophysics, particle physics

What you'll do

• Source your own material: a published paper, a Kaggle dataset, an open-source repository, or a scenario you design
• Write scientific prompts based on the input
• Build the grading criteria that define a correct answer
• Calibrate against frontier models — a task ships only when strong models fail it more often than they succeed

Required

• PhD in physics, applied physics, or a closely related field
• Demonstrated depth in at least two of the following subdomains: condensed matter, optics, quantum information/computing, computational physics, astrophysics, particle physics
• Working proficiency in Python, R, or another relevant programming language for scientific computing
• Comfortable with Git/GitHub and running code in Docker — authoring runs through a pull-request workflow with automated quality checks

Preferred

• Publications in peer-reviewed journals
• Prior scientific software or research engineering experience

Engagement

• Duration: 6 weeks
• Commitment: part-time, 20+ hours per week
• Start date: immediate

Process

1. Upload your resume and application form
2. A 25-minute conversational interview covering your background, experience, and motivationsFollow up within a few days with next steps and onboarding