PhD Position in Molecular Quantum Systems

A 4-year PhD position is available at the Department of Chemistry and Physics of Materials at the University of Salzburg, Austria. The successful applicant will join the Materials Theory group and work within the Werner Siemens Foundation Research Center for Molecular Quantum Systems (molQ), an interdisciplinary undertaking of the Universities Basel, Bern and Salzburg. We will use advanced density functional theory and tight-binding calculations to gain a fundamental understanding of the interactions and self-assembly of organic molecules on the surfaces of superconductors and the topological nature of the emerging states.

Planned start of employment: as soon as possible

Duration of employment contract: 4 years

Hours of employment per week: 30

Salary: € 2,786.10 (14 x per year)

Job requirements:

• Completed MSc degree in either materials science, physics or chemistry, with a strong background in the other disciplines
• Working experience with electronic structure methods

Desirable additional qualifications:

• Experience with DFT calculations of molecules, solids and their surfaces
• Programming skills in at least one major language (e.g. python, C/C++, java)
• Excellent verbal and written English communication skills
• Self-motivation, initiative, teamwork, and a targeted and highly structured working style

Application:

Applicants are kindly asked to submit their application documents combined into a single PDF in the following order:

• Cover letter describing your motivation and how you qualify for the position
• CV
• Contact details of at least 2 academic referees

For informal enquiries please contact: Ulrich Aschauer at .

Application deadline: Review of applications will start on 21.7.2025 and continue until the position is filled

Please send your application by e-mail to , using “PhD molQ” as the subject line.

General information:

General information about working at the PLUS can be found here: https://www.plus.ac.at/personalentwicklung/jobportal/

The University Salzburg is committed to increasing the proportion of women among academic and general university staff, particularly in management positions, and therefore expressly encourages qualified women to apply. Women with equal qualifications will be given priority.

Persons with disabilities or chronic illnesses who meet the required qualification criteria are strongly encouraged to apply. For more information, please call +43/662/8044-2462 or visit .

Admissions are carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Universities Act 2002 (UG) and the Employees Act.