Posting Title
Post-Doctoral Researcher – Modular Medium-Voltage Power Electronics Design, Control, and Hardware Validation
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Location
CO - Golden
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Position Type
Postdoc (Fixed Term)
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Hours Per Week
40
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Working at NREL
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.
From day one at NREL, you’ll connect with coworkers driven by the same mission to save the planet. By joining an organization that values a supportive, inclusive, and flexible work environment, you’ll have the opportunity to engage through our ten employee resource groups, numerous employee-driven clubs, and learning and professional development classes.
NREL supports inclusive, diverse, and unbiased hiring practices that promote creativity and innovation. By collaborating with organizations that focus on diverse talent pools, reaching out to underrepresented demographics, and providing an inclusive application and interview process, our Talent Acquisition team aims to hear all voices equally. We strive to attract a highly diverse workforce and create a culture where every employee feels welcomed and respected and they can be their authentic selves.
Our planet needs us! Learn about NREL’s critical objectives, and see how NREL is focused on saving the planet.
Note: Research suggests that potential job seekers may self-select out of opportunities if they don't meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage anyone who is interested in this opportunity to apply. We seek dedicated people who believe they have the skills and ambition to succeed at NREL to apply for this role.
Job Description
As a member of the Integrated Devices and Systems (IDS) group within the Power System Engineering Center (PSEC), the successful candidate will conduct high-quality research and development related to the advanced medium-voltage power electronics converters for future power systems. With advanced power conversion topology and control technologies, the medium-voltage converters will play critical roles in effectively interfacing renewable energy sources and supporting the power systems under nonideal conditions. The ideal candidate is experienced in and will support medium-voltage converter design, control, firmware development, and hardware validation at NREL's Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF). The successful post-doc will build expertise in these areas along with NREL staff.
The successful candidate is expected to fully participate in the IDS team and other relevant teams within PSEC and ESIF. Being able to work on multiple projects at once and interacting with user facility staff (domain experts in testing equipment) is critical for this position. Further, this position requires excellent writing and communication skills to disseminate completed works through publications in high-quality journals and conferences. The successful candidate will also follow all Environment, Safety, and Health policies and procedures to ensure and maintain a safe working environment.
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Basic Qualifications
Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.
* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.
Additional Required Qualifications
- Recent Ph.D. graduate in electrical engineering (or similar) within the last 3 years.
- Solid Power Electronics background including advanced power conversion topologies, converter control, design and analysis
- Hands-on experience in developing and testing 10 kW+ power electronics hardware prototypes in laboratory and/or field environments (including converter hardware design with wide bandgap devices, printed circuit board layout for noise immunity and signal integrity, and hardware validation)
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with one or more software simulation tools for modeling power electronics including PLECS, PSIM, MATLAB/Simulink SimPowerSystems
- Computer programming and software development experience
- Familiarity with TI DSPs including Code Composer Studio and MATLAB Code Generation Environment
- Hardware-in-the-Loop experience (e.g., RTDS, OPAL-RT, Typhoon HIL)
- Experience in modular converters, such as cascaded half-bridge or modular multilevel converters
- Experience in decentralized control, such as consensus control
- Existing track record of high-quality publications
- Excellent writing and communications skills
- Ability to present technical results to a wide audience
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Job Application Submission Window
The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.
Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)
Job Profile: Postdoctoral Researcher / Annual Salary Range: $73,200 - $120,800
NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.
Benefits Summary
Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short-term disability insurance*; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; and paid holidays. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement.
* Based on eligibility rules
Badging Requirement
NREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation.
Drug Free Workplace
NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.
If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.
Submission Guidelines
Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.
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EEO Policy
NREL is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.
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