Research Software Engineer

Brookhaven National Laboratory; Upton (NY); On-site; USD 105,000 - 151,000; Full time

Job summary

Brookhaven National Laboratory seeks a Research Software Engineer / Data Scientist to join the Data Science and Systems Integration division at NSLS-II. You will develop software for experiment planning, control, and data acquisition, and automate powder diffraction data processing within Bluesky/Tiled.

Collaboration with scientists and engineers will drive AI integration into beamline operations and intelligent experiment steering.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and 8+ years, or Master’s and 6+ years, or Doctorate and +2 years post-PhD in physics, chemistry, material science, biology, computational science, an engineering discipline or closely related field of study.
• Proficiency in Python or C++ programming.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to work effectively in a collaborative research environment.
• Self-motivated, with a strong ability to learn quickly and adapt to new challenges.

Responsibilities

• Develop, deploy, and maintain open-source software for experiment planning, control, and data acquisition within the Bluesky/Tiled ecosystem.
• Develop tools to automate and streamline the processing and analysis of powder diffraction data.
• Collaborate with scientists and engineers to integrate AI algorithms into beamline operations and enable intelligent experiment steering.
• Provide user-facing support, training, and documentation while publishing and presenting results to the broader community.

Skills

Python

C++

Interpersonal skills

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

HTTP APIs

Microservices

Kafka

RabbitMQ

Redis

ZeroMQ

Job description

The Data Science and Systems Integration (DSSI) division at the National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II) develops scientific software to orchestrate experiments, including control systems, automation, networking, data management, and analysis.Position DescriptionBrookhaven National Laboratory is seeking a Research Software Engineer / Data Scientist to join the Data Science and Systems Integration (DSSI) Division at the National Synchrotron Light Source-II (NSLS-II). This unique position is in part supported by the ILLUMINE initiative, a DOE-wide collaboration advancing intelligent experiment steering and in part by the Genesis Mission BES AI Pathfinder Program to support the automatic analysis of powder diffraction data. These projects support and complement each other to deliver unique world leading capabilities to NSLS-II's users.The successful candidate will contribute to the development of cutting-edge software infrastructure that powers intelligent beamline control and experimental methods and will contribute to the automation of Powder Diffraction data reduction and analysis. You will help build critical technologies for self-driving beamlines by integrating AI-driven decision-making directly into experimental workflows, accelerating scientific discovery across all six DOE light and neutron sources. You will help apply all of these developments in practical applications.This role offers an outstanding opportunity to work with artificial intelligence, high-performance scientific software, and advanced x-ray diffraction. The position focuses on fundamental software engineering, AI/ML integration, and real-time data systems with direct impact on beamline operations and user science at NSLS-II and across the DOE complex.Essential Duties and Responsibilities:Develop, deploy, and maintain open-source software for experiment planning, control, and data acquisition within the Bluesky/Tiled ecosystem.Develop tools to automate and streamline the processing and analysis of powder diffraction data.Collaborate with scientists and engineers to integrate AI algorithms into beamline operations and enable intelligent experiment steering.Provide user-facing support, training, and documentation while publishing and presenting results to the broader community.Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:Bachelor’s and 8+ years, or Master’s and 6+ years, or Doctorate and +2 years post-PhD in physics, chemistry, material science, biology, computational science, an engineering discipline or closely related field of study.Proficiency in Python or C++ programming.Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to work effectively in a collaborative research environment.Self-motivated, with a strong ability to learn quickly and adapt to new challenges.Experience with scientific instrument data acquisition and analysisundefinedPreferred Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:Expertise in powder diffraction data analysis methodsExperience managing distributed software systems.Contributions to community-led open-source projects.Familiarity with data acquisition and analysis at a synchrotron light source, neutron source, or other major scientific facility.Experience in developing and deploying AI models.Demonstrated ability to collaborate on distributed software development teams.Experience with HTTP APIs and Microservices,Experience with containerization technologies (docker or Kubernetes)Familiarity with message bus solutions such as Kafka, RabbitMQ, Redis, or ZeroMQ.Brookhaven National Laboratory is committed to providing fair, equitable and competitive compensation. The full salary range for this position is $104,700.00 - $150,733.00 / year. Salary offers will be commensurate with the final candidate’s qualification, education and experience and considered with the internal peer group.Brookhaven National Laboratory is committed to employee success and we believe that a comprehensive employee benefits program is an important and meaningful part of the compensation employees receive. Review more information at BNL | Benefits ProgramBrookhaven National Laboratory requires all non-badged personnel including visitors to produce a REAL-ID or REAL-ID compliant documentation to access Brookhaven National Laboratory – view more information at www.bnl.gov/real-id . This is due to nationwide identification requirements for federal site access as required by the federal REAL ID Act . Those not in possession of a REAL ID-compliant document will not be permitted to access the site which includes access to the Laboratory for interviews .As a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory requires employees to obtain and maintain a DOE Uncleared Personal Identity Verification (UPIV) credential in accordance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) requirements. The credentialing process is completed as part of onboarding and enables access to DOE facilities and information systems. As a condition of employment, the selected candidate must be able to obtain and maintain a UPIV credential. These requirements are established under DOE Order 206.2 Chg. 2, Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM- Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) ) , and DOE Order 473.1A- Physical Protection Program- Physical Protection Program .About UsBrookhaven National Laboratory (www.bnl.gov) delivers discovery science and transformative technology to power and secure the nation’s future. Brookhaven Lab is a multidisciplinary laboratory with seven Nobel Prize-winning discoveries, 37 R&D 100 Awards, and more than 70 years of pioneering research. The Lab is primarily supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science. Brookhaven Science Associates (BSA) operates and manages the Laboratory for DOE. BSA is a partnership between Battelle and The Research Foundation for the State University of New York on behalf of Stony Brook University. BSA salutes our veterans and active military members with careers that leverage the skills and unique experience they gained while serving our country, learn more at BNL | Opportunities for Veterans at Brookhaven National Laboratory .Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action EmployerGuided by our core values of integrity, responsibility, innovation, respect, and teamwork, Brookhaven Science Associates is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer-Vets/Disabled. We are committed to fostering a respectful and collaborative environment that fuels scientific discovery. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to any characteristic protected by law. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply. We ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation. *VEVRAA Federal ContractorBSA employees are subject to restrictions related to participation in Foreign Government Talent Recruitment Programs, as defined and detailed in United States Department of Energy Order 486.1A. You will be asked to disclose any such participation at the time of hire for review by Brookhaven. The full text of the Order may be found at: https://www.directives.doe.gov/directives-documents/400-series/0486.1-BOrder-a/@@images/file