NIST works with industry and science to advance innovation and improve quality of life. We're looking for a Research Chemist to join our team! This notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which NIST has a severe shortage of candidates.

Duties

The major duties of this position focus on creating model composite materials and measurement methods that provide materials insight and design cues for the tough and durable composite materials that are made in nature. The structural motif that is found in naturally occurring tough composites is the chiral Bouligand structural arrangements of the stiff needle-like cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and chitan nanocrystals (ChNCs) that are found in natural organisms and materials. In this position the applicant will need to extract and purify the CNC and ChNCs from natural materials, control the self-assembly of these nanocrystals into controlled Bouligand structures, and the create composites by integrating the bouligand structures into polymer matrix composites. The applicant will also have to perform characterization technique to quantify the structure of these composites as well as perform high rate microballistic impact studies to assess the ability to mitigate impact. Additional duties include developing instruments, conducting studies on model materials, writing of peer-reviewed publications, giving internal and external presentations, and generating fundamental knowledge that will be broadly shared across the semiconductor community.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
• Suitable for Federal employment
• Bargaining Unit Position: No
• Transcripts are required.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements: A. Degree: physical sciences, life sciences, or engineering that included 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by course work in mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics. OR B.Combination of education and experience -- course work equivalent to a major as shown in A above, including at least 30 semester hours in chemistry, supplemented by mathematics through differential and integral calculus, and at least 6 semester hours of physics, plus appropriate experience or additional education IN ADDITION TO THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must also have 1 year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-9 (ZP-II at NIST) level. Specialized experience is defined as experience creating composite materials and the general methods to characterize the mechanical property of these composites. OR Master's or equivalent graduate degree as defined in the basic requirements. OR A combination of graduate education and specialized experience as defined in the additional requirements. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done. We will credit all qualifying volunteer experience in your application. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. Applicant Reconsideration

Education

This position has an education requirement. Transcripts must be submitted to validate that the education requirement has been met. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted in the application package. However, an official copy will be required prior to a final offer of employment.

Education completed outside of the U.S. must be evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that it is comparable to education received in accredited institutions in the U.S. Click here to view a listing of accredited organizations from the Department of Education's website. A copy of the foreign education evaluation (containing the results with a course by course listing) is required with your application.

Contacts

• Address Materials Science and Engineering Division 100 Bureau Drive Gaithersburg, MD 20899 US
• Name: Evelyn Carter-Hopkins
• Phone: 000-000-0000
• Email: [email protected]