Location: Los Alamos, NM
Cap-Exempt H-1B Position — No lottery required
**What You Will Do** The Q-6 Detonation Science and Technology Group is seeking candidates for a postdoctoral position spanning experimental and computational physics for high energy density (HED) science. Research in Q-6 spans the fundamental physics and applied science of energetic materials, detonators, and rapidly evolving hydrodynamic phenomena in support of national security missions. This position emphasizes short-pulse laser plasma physics relevant to ultrafast radiography platforms and detonator-related HED plasmas, including Exploding Foil Initiators (EFI), Exploding Bridgewires (EBW), and Optical Initiators (OI). Key research activities include experimental and/or modeling efforts in initiator plasma physics, laser-plasma interactions, laser-driven radiation sources, and the development of ultrafast radiography techniques for imaging HED phenomena. The successful candidate will contribute to building and/or modeling of a new radiography capability driven by a 10 TW Ti:Sapphire laser focused to relativistic intensities. Radiation sources will include betatron x-rays from laser-wakefield acceleration and bremsstrahlung x-rays from laser-solid interactions. Offsite experimental campaigns are anticipated at facilities including or similar to the Zetawatt Equivalent Ultrashort Pulse (ZEUS), Colorado State University (CSU) Petawatt, and Advanced Laser Light Source (ALLS) facilities, as well as the Advanced Photon Source (APS) synchrotron. Depending on project needs, responsibilities may include experiment design and execution, diagnostics development, data analysis, and hydrodynamic modeling of HED systems. **What You Need** **Minimum Job Requirements:** Applicants should clearly address each of the following requirements in their cover letter: - Q clearance: The selected applicant will be subject to a Federal background investigation and must meet eligibility requirements, which requires U.S. citizenship - Ability to carry out independent and collaborative res