The development and production of superconducting magnets, a key enabling technology for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and its successors, relies on robust characterization of superconducting wire and cable. The superconductor laboratory in CERN's Magnets, Superconductors and Cryostats Group is a leading test facility, having qualified thousands of kilometres of Nb3Sn, Nb Ti and MgB2 wire and cable for the High Luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider (HL-LHC project) at 1.9-4.3 K. To equip the laboratory to characterise and qualify superconductors meeting the needs of accelerator magnets for proposed future circular colliders, significant upgrades are planned, including new critical current test stations for measurements at or above 18 T.

This project will play a key role in implementing these upgrades, including:

• Consolidating magnetization and inter-strand resistance measurement systems

• Commissioning new superconducting magnets and critical current test stations

• Coordination of cryogenic infrastructure upgrades

• Test station and sample-holder design and implementation

• Data acquisition development

• Contribution to potential additional test facilities

Who we are looking for

Eligibility criteria:

• You are a national of a CERN Member or Associate Member State.
• You have a professional background in Electrical Engineering, Physics (or a related field) and have either:
  • a Master's degree with 2 to 6 years of post-graduation professional experience;
  • or a PhD with no more than 3 years of post-graduation professional experience.
• You have never had a CERN fellow or graduate contract before.

Skills and/or knowledge

• Electromagnetic testing of superconductors (e.g. critical current, magnetometry); design and production of test equipment; cryogenics; data acquisition development; scripting for data analysis;
• You should have a working knowledge of English or French.

Job closing date: please note that the closing date has been extended further to Monday 16 October 2023 at 23:59 (CEST)

Job reference: TE-MSC-LSC-2023-77-GRAP

Contract duration: 24 months, with a possible extension up to 36 months maximum.

Target start date: 01-February-2024

What we offer

• A monthly stipend ranging between 6194 and 6808 Swiss Francs per month (net of tax).
• Coverage by CERN's comprehensive health scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund.
• Depending on your individual circumstances: installation grant; family, child and infant allowances; payment of travel expenses at the beginning and end of contract.
• 30 days of paid leave per year.
• On-the-job and formal training at CERN as well as in-house language courses for English and/or French.

About us

At CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, physicists and engineers are probing the fundamental structure of the universe. Using the world's largest and most complex scientific instruments, they study the basic constituents of matter - fundamental particles that are made to collide together at close to the speed of light. The process gives physicists clues about how particles interact, and provides insights into the fundamental laws of nature. Find out more on http://home.cern.

We are on a Quest. A Journey into discovery like no other. Bring your expertise to our unique work and develop your knowledge and skills at pace. Join world-class subject matter experts on unique projects, in a Quest for greater knowledge and deeper understanding.

Begin your CERN Quest. Take Part!

Diversity has been an integral part of CERN's mission since its foundation and is an established value of the Organization. Employing a diverse workforce is central to our success.