The Quantum Calorimeters Group at NIST Boulder and the University of Colorado-Boulder is seeking a Research Associate to join their team developing advanced cryogenic sensors for detecting single photons and particles. These cutting-edge detectors, operating at extremely low temperatures (100 millikelvin), use superconducting transition-edge sensors (TESs), thermal kinetic inductance detectors (TKIDs), and kinetic inductance current sensors (KICS) to achieve unprecedented sensitivity and energy resolution.
The group has already achieved significant milestones, including the highest energy resolution ever recorded with an energy-dispersive x-ray and gamma-ray detector, and the construction of the largest x-ray microcalorimeter to date. Their spectrometers are being used for a wide range of high-impact applications, such as studying highly charged ions and exotic atoms at CERN and J-PARC, materials analysis at synchrotron light sources, x-ray and gamma-ray astrophysics, radioactivity standards, 3D x-ray nanoprobe of circuits, and nuclear materials accounting and safeguards.
The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to research focused on improving the understanding of nonequilibrium superconducting processes, developing novel micromachined structures for larger detector arrays, testing detector arrays, developing multiplexed superconducting integrated circuits for readout, and applying these detectors to challenging measurement problems in various fields.
Keywords: cryogenic sensors, single photons, superconducting microcalorimeters, energy-dispersive x-ray, gamma ray detector
