About the position
Postdoctoral Research Associate - AI Catalysis
NU USA Northeastern University
About the Opportunity Job Summary Under the direction of the Principal Investigator, the Postdoctoral Research Associate designs and conducts experimental heterogeneous-catalysis research within autonomous, closed-loop (“self-driving”) laboratory workflows.
The position contributes to scholarly publications, sponsored-research deliverables, and the training of graduate and undergraduate researchers.
Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees.
All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.
Compensation Grade/Pay Type: 108S Expected Hiring Range: $60,315.00 - $85,192.50 With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role.
Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.
Founded in 1898, Northeastern is a global research university and the recognized leader in experiential lifelong learning.
Our approach of integrating real-world experience with education, research, and innovation empowers our students, faculty, alumni, and partners to create worldwide impact.
Our global university system provides our community and academic, government, and industry partners with unique opportunities to think locally and act globally.
The university’s residential campuses for undergraduate and graduate degrees are located in Boston, London, and Oakland, California.
Our research and graduate campuses are in the Massachusetts communities of Burlington and Nahant; Arlington, Virginia; Charlotte, North Carolina; Miami; Portland, Maine; Seattle; Silicon Valley, California; Toronto; and Vancouver.
Northeastern’s personalized, experiential undergraduate and graduate programs lead to degrees through the doctorate in 10 colleges and schools across our campuses.
Our research enterprise, with an R1 Carnegie classification, is solutions oriented and spans the world.
Our faculty scholars and students work in teams that cross not just disciplines, but also sectors—aligned around solving today’s highly interconnected global challenges and focused on transformative impact for humankind.
What you’ll bring
- Minimum Qualifications Required PhD in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science, or a closely related field Knowledge of heterogeneous catalysis, reaction kinetics, thermodynamics, and structure–reactivity relationships Ability to design and operate catalytic reactors Ability to synthesize and characterize catalysts Proficiency in Python programming Ability to apply machine-learning methods to scientific data Ability to work independently and across disciplines Key Responsibilities &…
- Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees.
- Our approach of integrating real-world experience with education, research, and innovation empowers our students, faculty, alumni, and partners to create worldwide impact.
At a glance
- Position type
- Research associate
- Institution
- NU USA Northeastern University
- Department
- Not stated
- Research group
- Not stated
- Location
- NU Boston Campus, United States, US
- Supervisor / contact person
- Not stated
- Funding
- Salaried
This includes medical, vision, dental, paid time off, tuition assistance, wellness & life, retirement- as well as commuting & transportation.
Compensation Grade/Pay Type: 108S Expected Hiring Range: $60,315.00 - $85,192.50 With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role.
Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change. - Duration
- Not stated
- Expected start
- Not stated
- Vacancy reference
- R141000
Research focus
- Discipline
- Materials Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering
- Research area
- Electrocatalysis
- Methods
- Synthesis
- Software
- Python
Dates to know
- Listed on FOSS Positions
- 18 Sep 2026
- Original advertisement date
- 2026-07-20
- Application deadline
- Deadline not stated
- Priority review date
- Not stated
- Last checked
- 18 Sep 2026
- Last updated
- 18 Sep 2026
How to apply
About the Opportunity Job Summary Under the direction of the Principal Investigator, the Postdoctoral Research Associate designs and conducts experimental heterogeneous-catalysis research within autonomous, closed-loop (“self-driving”) laboratory workflows. The role integrates catalyst synthesis, high-throughput reactor testing, and in situ/operando characterization with machine-learning and agentic artificial intelligence (AI) methods that propose, prioritize, and interpret experiments, accelerating the discovery and optimization of catalytic materials for energy and sustainability applications. The position contributes to scholarly publications, sponsored-research deliverables, and the training of graduate and undergraduate researchers. Minimum Qualifications Required PhD in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science, or a closely related field Knowledge of heterogeneous catalysis, reaction kinetics, thermodynamics, and structure–reactivity relationships Ability to design and operate catalytic reactors Ability to synthesize and characterize catalysts Proficiency in Python programming Ability to apply machine-learning methods to scientific data Ability to work independently and across disciplines Key Responsibilities & Accountabilities Design, synthesize, and test heterogeneous catalysts (e.g., supported metals, oxides, single-atom systems, and high-entropy metal alloy systems) and operate catalytic reactors to measure activity, selectivity, and kinetics for targeted thermo- and/or electrocatalytic reactions Develop and run closed-loop autonomous workflows that couple automated synthesis, high-throughput screening, and online/in situ characterization with active-learning and Bayesian-optimization pipelines to guide experiment selection Build agentic artificial intelligence (AI) workflows and FAIR experimental data infrastructure for instrument orchestration, automated data curation, and autonomous hypothesis generation linking synthesis, characterization,…
Open application page ↗https://hr.northeastern.edu/benefits/
Original sources
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