Superconducting Engineer - Fully Remote | Upto $84/hr

mercor; United States; Remote; USD 96,000 - 152,000; Part time

Job summary

Mercor seeks an Experimental Scientist / Engineer for a remote, contract role focused on superconductors. You will synthesize and characterize materials and build high-quality training data for AI systems.

Applicants should review AI-generated reasoning, design experiments around Tc/Jc and magnetic fields, and analyze results from XRD, SQUID/VSM, and cryogenic tests. Strong written English is essential.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experimental experience with superconducting materials.
• Experience with synthesis/processing techniques (solid-state, single-crystal growth, thin-film deposition).
• Strong ability to characterize superconducting properties via electrical/magnetic measurements.
• Clear written English and ability to explain complex results concisely.
• Advanced degree (PhD/MS) or equivalent hands-on research in a relevant field.

Responsibilities

• Contribute domain expertise to build training/evaluation data for AI models.
• Review AI-generated reasoning for superconducting materials, identifying errors.
• Design and solve advanced problems involving Tc, Jc, critical fields and vortex behavior.
• Analyze experimental results from XRD, SEM/TEM, SQUID/VSM, cryogenic measurements.
• Rank model outputs against scientific criteria with clear reasoning.
• Organize technical knowledge into model-ready, structured data.

Skills

Superconducting materials

Synthesis and processing

Experimental design

Technical writing

Education

PhD or MS in a relevant field

Tools

XRD

SEM

TEM

SQUID

VSM

Cryogenics

Thin-film deposition

Job description

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark , General Catalyst , Peter Thiel , Adam D'Angelo , Larry Summers , and Jack Dorsey .

Position: Experimental Scientist / Engineer – Superconductors

Type: Contract

Compensation: $84/hour

Location: Remote

Role Responsibilities

• Contribute deep domain expertise across superconducting material synthesis, characterisation, experimental superconductivity, fabrication, and device physics to build high-quality training and evaluation data.
• Review and evaluate AI-generated scientific reasoning related to superconducting materials and phenomena , identifying experimental or theoretical errors and improving technical accuracy.
• Design and solve challenging, expert-level problems involving critical temperature (Tc), critical current density (Jc), critical magnetic fields, magnetic susceptibility, electrical transport, flux pinning, vortex behaviour, and structure–property relationships .
• Analyse and reason about experimental results from techniques such as XRD, SEM/TEM, SQUID/VSM magnetometry, resistivity and magnetotransport measurements, spectroscopy, and cryogenic measurements .
• Rate and rank model outputs against defined scientific criteria, providing clear written reasoning grounded in experimental superconductivity.
• Structure technical knowledge — including synthesis procedures, processing parameters, phase and structural data, transport measurements, magnetic measurements, and device data — into well‑organised, model‑ready data.

Qualifications Must‑Have

• Hands‑on experimental experience with one or more classes of superconducting materials , including cuprate/high‑temperature superconductors, iron‑based superconductors, conventional superconductors, MgB₂, REBCO/YBCO systems, or emerging superconducting materials .
• Experience with superconducting material synthesis or processing , such as solid‑state synthesis, single‑crystal growth, powder processing, thin‑film deposition, or related techniques.
• Strong experience characterising superconducting properties through electrical resistivity/transport, magnetotransport, magnetic susceptibility, SQUID/VSM magnetometry, critical current measurements, critical field measurements, or cryogenic experiments .
• Strong understanding of superconducting phenomena, including Tc, Jc, critical magnetic fields, Meissner effect, flux pinning, vortex dynamics, and the relationship between material structure and superconducting performance .
• An advanced degree ( PhD/MS ) or equivalent hands‑on research experience in materials science, condensed matter physics, applied physics, chemistry, electrical engineering, or a closely related field.
• Clear written English and the ability to explain complex experimental results and technical reasoning concisely.

Preferred

• Experience with superconducting thin films, heterostructures, or device fabrication using techniques such as PLD, MBE/epitaxy, sputtering, lithography, etching, or clean‑room micro/nanofabrication.
• Experiencewith applied superconductors or superconducting devices , such as superconducting wires and tapes, coated conductors, Josephson junctions, SQUIDs, superconducting circuits, resonators, detectors, or superconducting quantum devices.