Postdoctoral Research Associate - XFEL Hub

About Us

Diamond Light Source is the UK’s national synchrotron science facility. By accelerating electrons to near light-speed, Diamond generates brilliant beams of light from infra-red to X-rays which are used for academic and industry research and development across a range of scientific disciplines including structural biology, physics, chemistry, materials science, engineering, earth, and environmental sciences.

About the Role

We now have an opportunity for a Postdoctoral Research Associate (PDRA) for an appointment of up to three years as part of a newly funded UKRI grant entitled, “UK - Switzerland Partnership for Dynamic Structural Biology”. We seek candidates for this PDRA position with an emphasis on serial crystallography correlated with X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) collected at synchrotrons and/or at XFELs. You will help commission instrumentation to enable on-demand sample delivery methods in serial crystallography with an aim to collect room-temperature, time-resolved datasets at Diamond Light Source and/or at XFELs – including SwissFEL. This will be integrated with a von Hamos geometry, energy dispersive spectrometer for XES data collected from iron, copper, and/or nickel containing systems, and you will also help with commissioning it at Diamond VMXi beamline and/or XFELs including the SwissFEL Cristallina end station.

The XFEL Hub and our collaborators conduct research and development at the forefront of serial and time-resolved macromolecular crystallography. We also work to transfer those techniques that are complementary and synergistic between XFELs, synchrotrons, and cryo-EM, and/or electron diffraction (ED). Our research and development efforts cross several fronts in biophysics from enzyme kinetics to various types of spectroscopies and includes a variety of serial crystallography experiments at Diamond Light Source and all hard X-ray XFEL facilities around the world. Our science drivers include heme and non-heme metalloenzymes that use Fe, Cu, and/or Ni ions or clusters to facilitate catalysis of a wide range of energetically difficult reactions in biology.

We define dynamic structural biology as a philosophy as well as a set of tools to collect as much data as possible, from every sample and every X-ray pulse, at physiological temperature and pressure, with an aim to create time-resolved, stop-motion, molecular movies of macromolecules engaged in function. One of our over-arching objectives is to create routine and robust strategies that exploit microcrystal slurries for time-resolved studies at XFELs and storage rings like Diamond’s VMXi and I24 beamlines. Many of our research and development efforts include large, international collaborations with significant interactions at the University of Oxford and other UK universities, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and XFEL facilities in the USA, Japan, Korea, Germany, and Switzerland.

Duties include:

Contributing to the research and development (R&D) activities in dynamic structural biology of (metallo)enzymes.
Participating in R&D efforts in time-resolved structural biology for applications at synchrotron X-ray sources, hard X-ray XFEL sources such as LCLS, SACLA, SwissFEL PAL-XFEL, and the European XFEL.
Contributing to the analysis of and publication of scientific results in international peer-review journals.
Keeping up to date with the latest results and evolving methods for structural biology at leading synchrotron and XFEL sources, especially with respect to sample delivery and/or time-resolved strategies.
Dependable participation in large, international collaborative teams with diverse backgrounds

About You

You will hold an PhD in biochemistry, chemistry, biophysics, or related engineering field(s) as well as experience in the use of scientific instrumentations and data collection.

XFEL experience in time-resolved structural biology and/or spectroscopy is highly desirable, but not essential.

Benefits

Diamond offers an exceptional benefits package to support staff in achieving a positive work/life balance. This includes 26 days annual leave plus Christmas closure, public holidays, 2 annual volunteering days and flexible working hours. We also offer an excellent defined benefit pension scheme. Staff also have access to a range of amenities on site including a nursery, cafes, a restaurant and sports and leisure facilities. A relocation allowance may also be available where applicable.

To Apply

Please use the online application process to apply and tell us why you believe you are suitable for this role.

The initial closing date for applications is 2nd April 2024, however applications will be reviewed and interviewed on an ongoing basis until this vacancy is filled.