Job details

Job reference 26/113657

Date posted 28/09/2026

Application closing date 12/10/2026

Salary 42,972 - 51,270 per annum

Job category/type Research

Attachments Blank

Research Fellow

About the job:

Applications are invited for a two-year, fixed-term Research Fellow position in the group of Professor Swadzba-Kwasny, funded through an EPSRC Materials Innovation Partnership project and delivered in collaboration with Ionic Technologies.

The project will develop innovative, hydrogen fluoride-free routes for converting recycled rare earth oxide feedstocks into rare earth fluorides. The successful candidate will take a leading role in materials synthesis and physicochemical characterisation, contribute to the development of calcination and powder engineering processes for downstream metallisation, and participate in industrial scale trials at Ionic Technologies.

About the person:

Candidates should clearly demonstrate how they meet the following criteria on their application:

Have or be about to obtain a PhD in chemistry, material science or a relevant subject. About to will be defined as thesis submission within 3 months of application date.

Specific, relevant research experience to include:

Experience in the use of multi-technique characterisation of inorganic materials, including at least some of the following: pXRD, single-crystal XRD, SEM/EDX, DSC/TGA/STA, EXAFS, laser diffraction (PSD), ICP-OES, XRF.
Working effectively as part of a research team in the development and promotion of the research theme.
Ability to carry out analyse, interpret and critically evaluate data.
Ability to prepare journal papers and/or contribute to patent preparation.
Ability to supervise research students.
Strong publication record commensurate with stage of career.

This is not an exhaustive list. To be successful at shortlisting stage, please ensure you clearly evidence in your application how you meet the essential and, where applicable, desirable criteria listed in the Candidate Information on our website.

This post is available for 24 months. Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the first instance but in particular circumstances may be renewed or made permanent subject to availability of funding.

What we offer:

Beyond a competitive salary, the University offers an attractive benefits package including a holiday entitlement of up to 8.4 weeks a year, pension schemes and development opportunities. We support staff wellbeing with flexible working options, work-life balance initiatives and support for physical and mental health. You can find more detail on all of this and more at

https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/HumanResources/pay-reward-and-benefits/

Queen's University is committed to promoting equality of opportunity to all. We subscribe to Equality Charter Marks such as the Diversity Charter Mark NI and Athena Swan and have established staff networks such as iRise (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic and International Staff Network) and PRISM (LGBTQ+) which help us progress equality. For further information on our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, please visit

www.qub.ac.uk/diversity.

If you are an international applicant and don't already hold a visa that permits you to take up the role you are applying for, please use the information provided on our website to self-assess whether the University is likely to be able to support a visa application -

http://go.qub.ac.uk/internationalstaffsupport

Candidate Information

Apply online

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