Applications are invited for the post of Junior Research Fellow (JRF) in a SERB-funded research project entitled “Understanding the dominant sites in sulfur vacancy activated molybdenum disulfide electrocatalyst towards hydrogen evolution reaction” under the supervision of Dr. Bhaskar Kaviraj (Principal Investigator), Department of Physics, School of Natural Sciences, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (Deemed to be University), Delhi NCR.
Eligible and interested candidates should send their application with a complete CV (having personal and academic details, academic qualifications with percentage of marks, research experiences, publications, name, affiliation, and email address of at least two referees) to Dr. Bhaskar Kaviraj (bhaskar.kaviraj@snu.edu.in) on or before 10th March 2023. The scanned copies of marksheets/transcripts/testimonials/ certificates, a recent passport-size photograph, and other relevant documents are also requested to attach. Short-listed candidates will be communicated for an online interview on/before 15th March 2023.
Project Synopsis
The project concerns the understanding of the physical mechanisms of semiconducting two-dimensional (2D) layered van der Waals materials for their role as electrocatalysts towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The project would largely involve the synthesis of semiconducting 2D nanostructures and thin films and tune their physical, chemical and electronic properties towards the development of an optimum electrocatalyst for HER applications.
Nature of work
Junior Research Fellow (JRF) will be responsible for the synthesis and development of 2D materials using various physical and chemical vapor based technique, solid state reaction routes and perform measurements related to HER. This project therefore requires a dedicated JRF for preparing samples, performing experiments, analysing data, and taking part in writing articles in peer-reviewed journals and attending conferences for presenting results. In due course of time, the JRF is expected to undergo formal training in handling several centralized instruments located in the Department of Physics related to the research. He/she will also be willing and enthusiastic in performing specific experiments in some research institutions located within India as and when required given the collaborative nature of the project. It is expected that the JRF, after receiving proper training, will maintain the instruments and also train undergraduate students in the lab.
Objectives
Synthesis of thin films and nanostructures of 2D MoS2 based materials with rich catalytic active sites.
Identification and quantification of active sites in different synthesized systems.
Design of strategy for the activation and tuning of active sites in the systems.
Analysis of structural, chemical and morphological properties of synthesized systems.
Perform electrochemical measurements for detailed study of HER.
Communication of important results in scientific peer-reviewed journals.
Essential and Desirable Qualifications
- The candidate should have a master’s degree (with a minimum of 60% marks or an equivalent grade) in Physics from a UGC-recognized University or Institution.
- Prior experience in synthesis of nanomaterials will be preferred.
- Experience in the characterization techniques like XRD, PL, and UV-Vis will be preferred. Handling of electrochemical workstation will be an advantage.
- Candidates with CSIR/UGC-NET/JEST/GATE are encouraged to apply.
- Good written and oral communication skills are necessary.
Duration of the Project
Initially, six months (purely temporary), which can be extended further up to another two and half year based on satisfactory performance.
Fellowship
As per DST norms, the fellowship is ₹31,000/- p.m. plus HRA (as per DST norms).
Application deadline: 10th March 2023
About Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (SNIoE)
Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence is a student-centric, multidisciplinary and research-focused University offering a wide range of academic programs at the Undergraduate, Master's and Doctoral levels. The University was set up in 2011 by the Shiv Nadar Foundation, a philanthropic foundation established by Mr. Shiv Nadar, founder of HCL. The University is in the quest to become a globally acclaimed center for learning and innovation in the fields of Engineering, Natural Sciences, Humanities & Social Sciences, and Management. The core of the University consists of a select, world-class faculty with doctoral and postdoctoral experiences from ranked universities worldwide.
Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence has recently been selected as one of the ten private Institutions of Eminence by the Government. In the NIRF (Government’s National Institutional Ranking Framework), the University has been the youngest institution in the 'top 100' Overall list. In NIRF-2022, it ranked 61 in the 'University' category. Shiv Nadar University has been accredited with a Grade ‘A’ by NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council), valid for five years from 26 November 2019. It is also among a select group of greenfield institutions in the country that was awarded the prestigious Atal Incubation Center grant by the NITI Aayog, Government of India, in the very first round in 2017.
The Department of Physics is committed to pursuing research on fundamental and applied problems through an interdisciplinary research approach. The Department of Physics has state-of-the-art laboratory infrastructure and instrumental facilities for synthesis and characterization of bulk/thin films of various materials and their applications.
About the Physics Department
The Department of Physics at the Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (SNIoE) thrives to integrate teaching with research to bring the excitement of discoveries to the classroom and to involve undergraduate students in the research from an early stage of their academic journey. The research topics in the department of physics span from few atoms to the beginning of the universe to the whole saga of materials of technological and societal importance. In particular, the department is committed to equip all the students, scholars, and faculty members to meet and solve the challenges that contemporary society faces in the area of energy, electronics, environment and economic developments via theoretical or computational or experimental research or a combination of them. The department also encourages active collaborations to pursue interdisciplinary research across the university and the globe. Detailed descriptions of research interests of Physics faculty members and other relevant information can be found at https://physics.snu.edu.in/about/department.
The Physics research laboratories are equipped with basic research facilities, which include clean room, thermal deposition, chemical vapor deposition, pulsed electron deposition, magnetron sputtering, spin coater, ball-milling, vacuum annealing, high temperature oven, high temperature split tube furnaces, hydraulic press, glove box, microwave furnace, fume hoods, bio-safety cabinets, cryostat, XRD, AFM, photoluminescence, Raman spectrometer, PPMS, ellipsometry, FE-SEM, UV-visible-IR spectrophotometers, I-V measurement system, polarization loop-tracer, polarization microscope, fluorescence microscope, surface profiler, viscometer, thermal conductivity, contact angle, and many other instruments within the school of natural sciences.
Besides, the department can avail computational facilities that include a high-performance IBM cluster (“Magus”) having 60-node and 992-cores along with two nodes with GPU processors, delivering a theoretical peak performance of ~30TF. Physics faculty, students and research scholars have full and unlimited access to this facility for their computational research. Also, department has its own computational laboratory where 10 high performance workstations and 20 high-end desktops are available for conducting teaching and research. Several software for molecular modeling, molecular dynamics, quantum chemistry, statistic learning, bioinformatics, and cheminformatics, are also available.
Our central library is a modern 5-storey building and provides online access to the e-books, electronic journals and databases from APS, AIP, ACS, RSC, AMS, SIAM, IOP, Springer, Elsevier, Wiley, Nature, and others.