About the position

Position as Researcher in Scientific Instrumentation Development available at the Centre for Materials Science and Nanotechnology (SMN), University of Oslo. 

The position is for a period of 12 months.

Preferred starting date as soon as possible and no later than 01.01.2026. Place of work is SMN at Blindern, Oslo.

Job description / Project description

This position is a part of the research project «ZeoCat: Zeotype-based Catalysts for the production of consumables and fuels from recycled CO2 feedstock» funded by the Research Council of Norway (RCN). The project seeks to better understand industrially-relevant catalytic reactions through advanced experiments in chemical kinetics. The researcher in this position will oversee the development of cutting-edge scientific instrumentation (Temporal Analysis of Products) and experimental protocols for kinetic investigations in heterogeneous catalysis. 

Specific work tasks will include:

• Integrating various commercial and home-built hardware components into a unique research tool, including vacuum chambers, turbo-molecular pumps, mass-spectrometers (Quadrupole and Time-Of-Flight), electromagnetic pulse valves, pressure gauges, solenoid valves, resistive heaters and thermocouple sensors, PID controllers, actuated gate valves, etc.
• Programming in LabView environment for real-time instrument control.
• Implementation of a data acquisition system for highly time-resolved measurements of catalytic kinetics. 
• Designing and testing novel experimental protocols.

Newly developed instrument capabilities will be commissioned with milestone measurements pertaining to the scientific work in the project, in collaboration with a dedicated PhD candidate and other researchers in the Section of Catalysis  and Organic Chemistry. The researcher will also engage in knowledge exchange with international collaborators of the project, including possible trips to overseas laboratories and synchrotron radiation facilities. 

The Section of Catalysis and Organic Chemistry, in general, studies the correlation between catalyst composition/structure and their effects on chemical reactions. The section has approximately 35 members, subdivided into several groups, depending on the type of catalytic systems under study, various aspects of the subject (e.g. synthesis, characterization, or reaction studies) and/or methodology (e.g. experiments vs. theory). This position will be closely integrated with researchers and engineers who develop, support, and/or execute experiments in catalytic reactors and spectroscopic cells.

The Section for Catalysis and Organic Chemistry is part of the Centre for Materials Science and Nanotechnology (SMN) - an interdisciplinary collaboration between five research groups in physics and chemistry, which spearheads the MN Faculty's efforts for sustainable energy solutions. The Centre comprises UiO’s focus on renewable energy, materials science, and nanotechnology.

Qualification requirements

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition of being a leading research faculty. Candidates will be selected in accordance with this goal and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

• Applicants must hold a master’s degree or equivalent in Applied Physics, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Electronics Engineering or other disciplines relevant for the development of advanced scientific instruments and protocols. Candidates without a master’s degree have until 1st of September 2025 to complete the final exam. 
• Foreign completed degree (M.Sc.-level) corresponding to a minimum of four years in the Norwegian educational system.
• Knowledge of and hands-on experience with the LabView programming environment.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.

The following qualifications will also count in the assessment of the applicants:

• Experience with electrical circuits, oscilloscopes, wave-form generators, and digital signal processing will be prioritized 
• Experience with gas handling and vacuum systems
• Experience with Python programming

All candidates and projects will have to undergo an evaluation versus national export, sanctions and security regulations. Candidates may be excluded based on these evaluations. Primary checkpoints are the Export Control regulation, the Sanctions regulation, and the national security regulation.

Personal skills 

• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team
• Goal-oriented and able to uphold the project timeline
• Creative in solving technical challenges
• Motivated to learn new skills
• Good communication and collaboration skills
• Positive attitude and the ability to handle hectic periods

Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal skills.

We offer

• Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development.
• Committed colleagues in a good working environment.
• Good welfare schemes.
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours.
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities. 
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes.
• Salary in position as Researcher, position code 1108 in salary range NOK from 520 300 – 650 000, depending on competence, qualifications and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund.

Read more about the benefits of working in the public sector at Employer Portal.

Inclusive worklife and diversity at UiO

Inclusion and diversity are a strength. The University of Oslo has a personnel policy objective of achieving a balanced gender composition. Furthermore, we want employees with diverse professional expertise, life experience and perspectives.

If there are qualified applicants with disabilities, employment gaps or immigrant background, we will invite at least one applicant from each of these categories to an interview.

We hope that you will apply for the position. 

Application

Your application should include:

• Cover letter (statement of motivation, summarizing prior work and professional interests)
• CV (summarizing education, professional experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activity) 
• Copies of educational certificates, academic transcript of records and letters of recommendation
• A complete list of publications and/or other major works that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee (e.g. software repositories, description of relevant projects the applicant directly contributed to, such as photos of instrumentation or screenshots with software).
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for the position".

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will invited for interviews.

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we cannot, you will hear from us.

The position's subject area requires licensing under the Norwegian Export Control Act. In order to be considered for the position, it is a prerequisite that UiO must be able to be granted such licence. 
https://www.uio.no/english/studies/admission/master/export-control.html

Please refer to Regulations for the Act on universities and colleges chapter 3 (Norwegian) and Rules for the use of research posts SKO 1108, 1109, 1110 and 1183 at UiO.

The University of Oslo has a transfer agreement with all employees that is intended to secure the rights to all research results etc.

Contact persons

For further information please contact: Prof. Evgeniy Redekop, phone: +47 40560473, e-mail: evgeniyr@smn.uio.no 

For questions regarding Jobbnorge, please contact HR Adviser Ole Rustad, e-mail: ole.rustad@mn.uio.no