Postdoctoral Researcher – Mathematical Optimization for Energy Systems

National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Golden (CO); On-site; USD 76,600 - 126,400; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

403(b) Employee Savings Plan

Paid holidays and personal time off

Job summary

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, is seeking a Postdoctoral Researcher focused on mathematical optimization for energy systems. This full-time position involves collaboration with experts, the development of algorithmic approaches, and publishing research in the energy sector.

The ideal candidate will possess a recent Ph.D., with knowledge in optimization formulation and tools like Pyomo and CPLEX. Benefits include health insurance and a competitive salary.

Qualifications

• Recent PhD graduate within the last three years.
• Experience formulating optimization problems in an algebraic modeling language.
• Familiarity with optimization solvers including CPLEX, Gurobi, and others.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with domain experts to identify optimization opportunities.
• Adopt or develop new mathematical and computational frameworks.
• Identify and implement AI/RL to augment optimization algorithms.

Skills

Mathematical optimization

Parallel computing

Programming in Python

Experience with optimization solvers

Education

Ph.D. in a relevant field

Tools

Pyomo

CPLEX

Gurobi

MPI

OpenMP

PyTorch

Job description

Postdoctoral Researcher – Mathematical Optimization for Energy Systems

Location: Golden, Colorado
Position Type: Full‑time Postdoc (Fixed Term)
Hours per Week: 40

The National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado. NLR is the nation’s primary laboratory for energy systems research and development, bringing together world‑class scientists, engineers, and experts to accelerate energy innovation through breakthrough research and systems integration.

Job Description

The Advanced Computing Solutions Group in the NLR Computational Science Center seeks a full‑time Postdoctoral Researcher with an emphasis on mathematical optimization and its application to the design and control of energy systems. The successful candidate will develop and apply mathematical optimization formulations and algorithms to physical systems, design parallel algorithmic approaches for large‑scale optimization problems, and combine these with Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques such as reinforcement learning (RL). The role will involve collaboration with domain experts, development of computational frameworks, and publishing of research results.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with domain experts to identify opportunities where mathematical optimization is a viable approach.
• Maintain awareness of optimization research both within NLR and in the broader literature.
• Adopt or develop new mathematical, computing, and simulation frameworks to implement and evaluate optimization algorithms and solutions.
• Identify and implement opportunities to leverage AI/RL to augment classical optimization algorithms and/or formulations.
• Author publications and contribute to research proposals to sustain research directions.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements

• Recent PhD graduate (within the last three years).
• Experience formulating optimization problems in an algebraic modeling language such as Pyomo, JuMP, PuLP, or GAMS.
• Familiarity with optimization solvers including CPLEX, Gurobi, Xpress, Cbc, and Ipopt.
• Strong understanding of optimization fundamentals, both computational and mathematical.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with distributed computing frameworks such as MPI and OpenMP.
• Proficiency in Python and/or Julia.
• Experience with scalable machine learning frameworks such as PyTorch.
• Background in cross‑disciplinary research teams.
• Familiarity with parallel computing architectures relevant to NLR.

Salary and Benefits

Annual Salary Range: $76,600 – $126,400 (based on full‑time 40 hours per week).

Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short‑term disability insurance; pension benefits; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match; life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; and paid holidays. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement.

Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, or any other protected status under federal, state, or local laws.

Other Information

Applicants must be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD‑12) and pass a pre‑employment drug test. NLR is a drug‑free workplace in compliance with federal law.