Research Assistant/Associate (f/m/d) from material structure to component performance

Weitere Informationen

The successful candidate will be employed under a regular employment contract.
The position is to be filled at the earliest possible date and offered for a fixed term for an initial period of 2 years.
An extension of at least two years is foreseen.
The fixed-term employment is possible as it constitutes one of the fixed-term options of the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (German Act on Fixed-term Scientific Contracts).
This is a full-time position.
The successful candidate has the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree in this position.
The salary is based on the German public service salary scale (TV-L).
The position corresponds to a pay grade of EG 13 TV-L.

Unser Profil

The RWTH Aachen University’s Institute for Materials Applications in Mechanical Engineering (IWM) conducts both fundamental research across different material classes and application-oriented research and development in collaboration with industrial partners at national and international levels.

The research fields of the IWM range from additively manufactured components and steels in bearing components to large-scale cast components used in wind energy systems. In these areas, the institute investigates not only material testing and qualification but also the development of novel methods for component design.

Within the Micromechanics research field, approaches are developed to unlock new material and component potentials. To this end, integrative, multiscale simulation models, data-driven modeling approaches, and the experimental characterization of damage mechanisms are combined. The objective is to predict local material properties - particularly under fatigue loading - and to integrate these insights into innovative component design concepts.

As part of our team, you will benefit from:

• Cutting-edge Research: The IWM participates in coordinated programs such as Schwerpunktprogramme, Forschungsgruppen, and Sonderforschungsbereichen funded by the German Research Foundation, enabling collaboration in prestigious research consortia and projects.
• Personal Development: Continuous support for further academic qualification (doctoral degree and habilitation), offering scope for independent scientific work.
• Infrastructure: Access to a complete materials-science analysis chain, including a mechanical workshop, metallography laboratory, experimental hall, electron microscopy laboratories, thermophysical laboratory, and micromechanical testing facilities.
• Working Environment: An open and collegial atmosphere characterized by flat hierarchies and regular scientific exchange within the institute as well as with closely networked institutes inside and outside RWTH.

Ihr Profil

Education: You have successfully completed a university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in engineering, materials science, or physics.

Knowledge: You possess initial knowledge in physical metallurgy of metallic materials, continuum mechanics, or simulation methods.

Communication: You maintain an open communication style and are interested in interdisciplinary collaboration in both English and German.

Personal Attributes: You are capable of understanding and communicating complex technical interrelationships and use your independent working style to pursue a doctoral degree (Dr.-Ing.).

Ihre Aufgaben

You will become an integral part of the Micromechanics research field and work on research projects focused on methodological development in the area of lifetime prediction. Current projects include, among others, modeling high-silicon cast irons used in modern wind energy systems, calculating crack formation in PVD coatings applied to tool materials in metal forming processes, and predicting damage patterns in rolling element bearings that lead to premature failures in energy engineering applications.

Within these projects, you will contribute to research in the following areas:

High-Resolution Materials Characterization: Using state-of-the-art electron microscopy, you will characterize the microstructure of materials and identify structural features at scales ranging from a few micrometers to several nanometers, as well as their interactions with macroscopic material parameters.

Experimental Parameter Identification: You will employ micromechanical testing techniques (nanoindentation, in-situ tensile testing units) to characterize mechanical material behavior at the mesoscale. This includes combining experimental methods with high-resolution microstructural characterization, with some experiments conducted inside a scanning electron microscope under live observation.

Physics-Based Material Modeling: Based on experimentally determined material characteristics and degradation mechanisms, you will formulate physically motivated material models, also making use of machine learning methods where appropriate.

Development of Finite Element Material Simulations: You will use finite element simulations to investigate microstructures computationally and to derive models for lifetime prediction under service loading conditions, enabling their implementation in modern component design concepts.

Teaching: In your doctoral work, you will engage in teaching activities, which include tutorials and organizational tasks. Additionally, you will supervise student theses and incorporate their results into your own research.

Scientific Dissemination: You will prepare your findings for publication in peer-reviewed journals at both national and international levels, and present your results during project meetings, working groups, and scientific conferences.

Über uns

RWTH is a certified family-friendly University. We support our employees in maintaining a good work-life balance with a wide range of health, advising, and prevention services, for example university sports. Employees who are covered by collective bargaining agreements and civil servants have access to an extensive range of further training courses and the opportunity to purchase a job ticket.
RWTH is an equal opportunities employer. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from all suitably qualified candidates, particularly from groups that are underrepresented at the University. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability or age. RWTH is strongly committed to encouraging women in their careers. Female applicants are given preference if they are equally suitable, competent, and professionally qualified, unless a fellow candidate is favored for a specific reason.
As RWTH is committed to equality of opportunity, we ask you not to include a photo in your application.
You can find information on the personal data we collect from applicants in accordance with Articles 13 and 14 of the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) at http://www.rwth-aachen.de/dsgvo-information-bewerbung.

Besoldung / Entgelt

EG 13 TV-L