About BSC
The Barcelona Supercomputing Center - Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS) is the leading supercomputing center in Spain. It houses MareNostrum, one of the most powerful supercomputers in Europe, was a founding and hosting member of the former European HPC infrastructure PRACE (Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe), and is now hosting entity for EuroHPC JU, the Joint Undertaking that leads large-scale investments and HPC provision in Europe. The mission of BSC is to research, develop and manage information technologies in order to facilitate scientific progress. BSC combines HPC service provision and R&D into both computer and computational science (life, earth and engineering sciences) under one roof, and currently has over 1000 staff from 60 countries.
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We are particularly interested for this role in the strengths and lived experiences of women and underrepresented groups to help us avoid perpetuating biases and oversights in science and IT research. In instances of equal merit, the incorporation of the under-represented sex will be favoured.
We promote Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, fostering an environment where each and every one of us is appreciated for who we are, regardless of our differences.
If you consider that you do not meet all the requirements, we encourage you to continue applying for the job offer. We value diversity of experiences and skills, and you could bring unique perspectives to our team.
Context And Mission
The Materials Science team within the Computer Applications in Software Engineering (CASE) department at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC) is seeking a highly motivated researcher specialised in computational materials science. This position is part of an international project focused on “developing a new generation of porous layered carbon-nitride photo-electro-catalysts for green hydrogen generation.” Funded by the EU-LAC Interest Group, this initiative fosters scientific synergy between leading research institutions in Brazil, Argentina, Austria and Türkiye.
The successful candidate will perform multiscale atomistic modelling of novel materials, leveraging the unprecedented computational power of MareNostrum 5, one of the most advanced and powerful supercomputers in Europe. Given the versatility of these materials, we offer a unique opportunity to tailor specific research tasks to align with the candidate’s individual scientific interests and expertise.
Key Duties
- Conduct atomistic simulations to investigate defect stability and catalytic activity in carbon-nitride compounds.
- Lead the implementation of automated workflows for multiscale and multifidelity materials modelling and high-throughput materials discovery
- Drive the integration of cutting-edge AI-aided simulation techniques into the group’s research framework.
- Contribute to the advancement of the Materials Science team’s core research lines at BSC-CASE.
- Provide mentorship and supervision to early-stage researchers.
- Foster international collaboration through active engagement with academic and industrial partners.
- Contribute to scientific publications and periodic technical reporting.
Requirements
- Education
- MSc in Computational Physics, Theoretical Chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, or a closely related field.
- PhD in Computational Physics, Theoretical Chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, or a closely related field will be highly valuable.
- Essential Knowledge and Professional Experience
- Proven expertise in materials modelling using ab-initio DFT methods.
- Extensive experience as a user and/or developer of electronic structure methods, with a preference for open-source implementations such as SIESTA, Quantum ESPRESSO, Abinit, or Exciting.
- Experience with other popular atomistic simulation codes (i.e. VASP, Gaussian, LAMMPS…) will also be highly valued.
- Demonstrated experience in code development, parallelisation, and operating within large-scale High-Performance Computing (HPC) environments.
- Additional Knowledge and Professional Experience
- Experience in the development/fine-tuning of material-specific/universal interatomic potentials is highly desirable.
- Proficiency in using Machine Learning to establish complex structure-property relationships and designing large-scale materials discovery pipelines.
- Experience with automated workflow management and high-throughput schemes.
- Fluency in technical spoken and written English
- Competences
- A proactive, result-oriented, and analytical approach to complex scientific problems.
- The ability to work effectively both as part of an interdisciplinary team and independently.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to thrive in a multicultural, international environment.
Conditions
- The position will be located at BSC within the CASE Department
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We offer a full-time contract (35h/week), a good working environment, a highly stimulating environment with state-of-the-art infrastructure, flexible working hours, extensive training plan, restaurant tickets, private health insurance, support to the relocation procedures
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Duration: Open-ended contract due to technical and scientific activities linked to the project and budget duration
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Holidays: 22 days of holidays + 6 personal days + 24th and 31st of December per our collective agreement
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Salary: we offer a competitive salary commensurate with the qualifications and experience of the candidate and according to the cost of living in Barcelona
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Starting date: 01/09/2026
Applications procedure and process
All applications must be submitted via the BSC website and contain:
- A full CV in English including contact details
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A cover/motivation letter with a statement of interest in English, clearly specifying for which specific area and topics the applicant wishes to be considered. Additionally, two references for further contacts must be included. Applications without this document will not be considered.
Development of the recruitment process
The selection will be carried out through a competitive examination system ("Concurso-Oposición"). The recruitment process consists of two phases:
- Curriculum Analysis: Evaluation of previous experience and/or scientific history, degree, training, and other professional information relevant to the position. - 40 points
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Interview phase: The highest-rated candidates at the curriculum level will be invited to the interview phase, conducted by the corresponding department and Human Resources. In this phase, technical competencies, knowledge, skills, and professional experience related to the position, as well as the required personal competencies, will be evaluated. - 60 points. A minimum of 30 points out of 60 must be obtained to be eligible for the position.
The recruitment panel will be composed of at least three people, ensuring at least 25% representation of women.
In accordance with OTM-R principles, a gender-balanced recruitment panel is formed for each vacancy at the beginning of the process. After reviewing the content of the applications, the panel will begin the interviews, with at least one technical and one administrative interview. At a minimum, a personality questionnaire as well as a technical exercise will be conducted during the process.
The panel will make a final decision, and all individuals who participated in the interview phase will receive feedback with details on the acceptance or rejection of their profile.
At BSC, we seek continuous improvement in our recruitment processes. For any suggestions or comments/complaints about our recruitment processes, please contact recruitment [at] bsc [dot] es.
For more information, please follow this link.
Deadline
The vacancy will remain open until a suitable candidate has been hired. Applications will be regularly reviewed and potential candidates will be contacted.
OTM-R principles for selection processes
BSC-CNS is committed to the principles of the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers of the European Commission and the Open, Transparent and Merit-based Recruitment principles (OTM-R). This is applied for any potential candidate in all our processes, for example by creating gender-balanced recruitment panels and recognizing career breaks etc.
BSC-CNS is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We are pleased to consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or any other basis protected by applicable state or local law.
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This position is reserved for candidates who meet the requirements and have the legal status of disabled persons with a degree of disability equal to or greater than 33%. In case there are no applicants with disabilities that meet the requirements, the rest of the candidates without declared disability will be evaluated.
