Postdoctoral Appointee - Stress Diagnostics for Microelectronics Packaging, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories; Albuquerque (NM); On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Sandia National Laboratories, located in Albuquerque, NM, invites applicants for a postdoctoral appointment focused on advanced optical probes and materials models to diagnose stress in microelectronic packages under various thermal and aging conditions.

The role involves developing hyperspectral imaging approaches, collaborating with optical design, and contributing data for model validation. Onsite work is required, with relocation assistance for eligible candidates.

Qualifications

• PhD in relevant field conferred within five years.
• Experience developing or advancing material characterization techniques.
• Strong background in polymers and composites, including viscoelasticity and nonlinear behavior.
• Strong background in solid mechanics: strength, continuum mechanics, and mechanics of materials.
• Proven publication record with peer-reviewed journals.

Responsibilities

• Identify and map material-specific stress reporters in materials, test structures, and microelectronic device packages.
• Collaborate with optical design team to understand instrumentation principles and augment toolsets.
• Design test structures to examine stress-reporter sensitivity limits and imaging length scales.
• Aid constitutive modeling through data acquisition and analysis for model validation.
• Present findings at team meetings and to funding agencies; publish in peer-reviewed journals.

Skills

Research experience

Polymer science

Solid mechanics

Publications track record

DOE clearance eligibility

Education

PhD in Materials Science or related field

Job description

Job ID: 699054

Location: Albuquerque, NM

Contract: Full-Time, Temporary

Bidder Eligibility

This postdoctoral position is a temporary position for up to one year, which may be renewed at Sandia's discretion up to five additional years. The PhD must have been conferred within five years prior to employment. Individuals in postdoctoral positions may bid on regular Sandia positions as internal candidates, and in some cases may be converted to regular career positions during their term if warranted by ongoing operational needs, continuing availability of funds, and satisfactory job performance.

Employees, excluding student interns, must remain in their current position for one year from their hire date before bidding on a new job. However, the hiring manager may obtain approval to consider a candidate before the one-year requirement is met via the review process. This approval must be secured prior to being interviewed for a posted position. The application of this requirement will not supersede collective bargaining agreements. Please refer to the collective bargaining labor agreements for eligibility requirements for represented bidders.

About Sandia

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

*These benefits vary by job classification.

What Your Job Will Be Like

This is an exciting opportunity to join a highly productive and collaborative team at Sandia National Laboratories. We are seeking a Postdoctoral Appointee to assist in the development, implementation, demonstration and validation of advanced optical probes and science-based material models for diagnosing stress within microelectronic packaging designs across a wide range of thermal, mechanical, and aging conditions.

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Identify and map material-specific stress reporters in materials, application-relevant simplified test structures, and microelectronic device packages using custom, multimodal hyperspectral imaging techniques
• Collaborate closely with the optical design team to understand key instrumentation design principles and to aid in augmenting toolsets
• Design test structures to examine stress-reporter sensitivity limits and effective imaging length scales
• Aid constitutive modeling efforts through acquisition of relevant datasets and associated data analyses that provide required parameterization inputs to and validation of science-based model frameworks
• Present findings at team meetings and to relevant technical managers and funding agencies
• Publish research in peer-reviewed journals and present at national conferences; may include opportunities to present at international conferences

Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite. Relocation assistance will be provided for those that qualify.

Qualifications We Require

• Ph.D. in Materials Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mechanics, Aerospace Engineering, or a closely related field conferred within five years prior to employment with a demonstrated record of high academic achievement
• Research experience in developing or advancing material characterization techniques
• A strong background in the foundations of polymeric materials and composites, including viscoelasticity, non-equilibrium behavior of glasses, and nonlinear material behavior
• A strong background in the foundations of solid mechanics, including strength of materials, continuum mechanics, and mechanics of materials
• A strong track record of scientific and/or technical achievements through publication, as evidenced by peer-reviewed journals and external presentations at appropriate scientific conferences
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q clearance

Qualifications We Desire

• Ability to work independently and collaboratively with colleagues from diverse technical backgrounds across multiple organizations or institutions
• Demonstrated ability to design and execute independent research projects and to apply creative problem solving
• Demonstrated commitment to laboratory safety
• Strong written and verbal communication skills

About Our Team

The Organic Materials Science Department researches and develops new and advanced materials and processing strategies to meet a wide range of specialized applications in nuclear weapons, national security, and industrial settings. Our department is dedicated to scientific discovery, creativity, innovation, and practical solutions for our diverse customers.

The department specializes in aging science and predictive performance of polymers; synthetic organic chemistry and polymer chemistry; thermal, mechanical, chemical, and physical characterization of organic materials; and advanced manufacturing of polymers. We perform reliability studies for polymers with an emphasis on understanding degradation mechanisms, structure-property relationships, and performance margins. We support characterization and structural response testing of microelectronic packaging, including epoxy-based polymer systems. These studies include a complete spectrum of chemical, structural, thermal, rheological, and mechanical characterization of polymeric materials that must perform over lifetimes on the order of 30 to 40 years.

Current R&D areas include:

• Developing novel encapsulant materials
• Developing tailored foams for impact mitigation and shock-mitigating polymer systems
• Creating new thermoset chemistries for additive manufacturing
• Developing innovative NMR techniques to understand transport phenomena in polymers Measuring and optimizing electrical performance of polymer dielectrics
• Elucidating the interdependency of chemical change and polymer physics over long timeframes
• Creating reversible and degradable chemistries
• Understanding polymer interfacial properties and adhesion
• Measuring and predicting radiation effects on polymers
• Monitoring reactive thermoset cure kinetics
• Quantifying permeation behavior and spatially dependent degradation processes

Posting Duration

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Security Clearance

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

EEO

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.