The Helmholtz Centre Potsdam - GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences is the national centre for research into the geosphere. With around 1,650 employees, we develop a sound understanding of systems and processes of the solid Earth as well as strategies and options for action to counter global change, understand natural hazards and sustainably secure energy and raw material requirements.
Research Fellow (f_m_x) - Fibre Optic Sensing Methods
Reference Number 10056
Fibre optic sensing methods have been shown to be of great value for Earth Sciences. Some methods provide distributed dense strain/temperature measurements which allow access to dense spatial information, useful for assessing structural features and dynamic processes in the crust, however, they are limited to short-distance observations (10s km). Other methods allow trans-oceanic measurements but their spatial resolution is limited. The SENSEI EU project will investigate new fibre optic sensing methods (tested in the lab), with the goal to bridge this distance/resolution paradox. Within a team of photonic scientists and geophysicists, the project will test and validate these various methods in the field.
Your responsibilities:
- Deployment and acquisition of distributed dynamic strain observations (DAS - distributed acousting sensing) in various test sites, mainly Italy and Iceland
- Tend to data quality and management from the field to the storage system in the Computer centre at the GFZ
- Analysis of the distributed dynamic strain data recorded and comparison with other innovative photonic data by SENSEI partners and information on the test sites
- Perform seismic tomography using the dense records (DAS) including other information (seismometers); assess if the innovative data could help in this work
- Propose methods to quantify uncertainties and reduce them
- Together with SENSEI partners, test machine learning / AI methods for detecting and classifying events
- Present the methods/results in international meetings and publications
Your qualifications:
- MSc and PhD degree in Physics, Computer Science, Mathematics or Geosciences (Geophysics/Seismology)
- Experience in fibre optic sensing is highly appreciated
- Proven experience in data processing
- Experience in coding (Python, matlab, C, C++)
- Excellent publication and experience with 3rd party fundings
- Capacity for interdisciplinary and international teamwork and excellent communication skills
- Experience in the supervision of MSc/PhD students is a plus
- Demonstrated field work experience is a plus
- Proficiency in spoken and written English, German is a plus, not a must
What we offer:
- Ambitious and varied tasks in a dynamic and international research environment
- State-of-the-art equipment
- Public service benefits
- Extensive training opportunities
- Professional career advice offered by our in-house Career-Centre
- Flexible working hours and conditions
- Support with finding a good work-life balance offered by benefit@work
- Institute day-care centre on site
- Working at the Albert Einstein science park on the Telegrafenberg in Potsdam
- Work place within walking distance of Potsdam main train station, or just a short ride on the shuttle bus
Fixed-term: 2 years (with possibility of extension)
Salary: The position is classed as salary group 13 according to “TVöD Bund (Tarifgebiet Ost)”. The salary group is determined on the basis of the Collective Wage Agreement and the respective personal qualifications.
Working hours: Full-time (currently 39 h/week); The position is generally suitable for part-time work.
Place of work: Potsdam
Have we piqued your interest?
Diversity and equal opportunities are integral components of our human resources policy. The GFZ actively promotes diversity and explicitly welcomes applications from all qualified individuals, regardless of ethnic and social origin, nationality, gender, sexual orientation and identity, religion/belief, age and physical characteristics. Anyone who has been recognised as severely disabled, will be given preferential consideration in the event of equal suitability and qualification in accordance with the provisions of the German Social Code IX. If you have any questions, please contact our Representative Body for Employees with Disabilities at sbv[at]gfz-potsdam.de, who will be happy to assist you in the further application process. In case of further queries regarding gender equality, please do not hesitate to contact our Equal Opportunities Officer at gba[at]gfz-potsdam.de.
Your personal data will be processed for the purpose of conducting the selection procedure on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 b, Art. 88 GDPR in conjunction with Art. 26 of the Data Protection Act for the State of Brandenburg. After completion of the procedure, application documents will be deleted in compliance with data protection regulations.
