Job Description

About Sandia:

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacations, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov*These benefits vary by job classification.

What Your Job Will Be Like:

The Electric Power Systems Research group at Sandia National Laboratories is currently looking for a research engineer with a strong background in data science to join our team as a Postdoctoral Appointee. The position will focus on making technical contributions and leading projects in the areas of wildfire research, machine learning, geospatial analytics, and electric power systems.

The position will include applying data science and geospatial techniques to create wildfire and power systems tools for electric utilities and electric grid decision makers. The position will include work related to neural networks, clustering techniques, segmentation models, while using geospatial remote sensing data. The position will include partnering with multiple external organizations, writing proposals, and publishing peer reviewed conference and journal articles.

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Demonstrate technical knowledge with a focus on data science applied to wildfire and/or power systems research challenges.
• Demonstrate creativity and ingenuity in providing software solutions and analytical solutions.
• Work with colleagues and external collaborators to develop innovative solutions to emerging challenges facing the power industry.
• Publish research outcomes in peer-reviewed journals, conferences, etc.
• Present research findings to sponsors and externally to professional communities, e.g., IEEE, CIGRE, industry workshops, etc.

Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite in Albuquerque, NM. The selected applicant can work a combination of onsite and offsite work. The selected applicant must live within a reasonable distance for commuting to the assigned work location when necessary.

Qualifications We Require:

• Ph.D. in a science, engineering, or math discipline
• Experience with data science applications (e.g, developing strategies for analyzing geospatial, wildfire, and/or electric power systems data)
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE L-level security clearance

Qualifications We Desire:

• Strong programming ability and analytical skills, including excellence with Python.
• Experience processing and analyzing geospatial data and/or power systems data.
• Experience using machine learning, deep learning, and artificial intelligence techniques.
• Technical knowledge in wildfire modeling and/or power system modeling
• Expertise in data science applications
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Self-motivated and able to work independently with minimal supervision and ability to work in a team environment

About Our Team:

The Electric Power Systems Research Department is focused on novel R&D to enable the modernization of the nation's electric power grid. This work includes power system dynamics; grid stability; power system planning and operations; power system protection; threat modeling; grid resilience metrics and modeling; power systems controls and optimization techniques, and artificial intelligence and data analytics applied to the electric grid. The department is highly inter-disciplinary working closely with many departments across Sandia, while simultaneously working collaboratively with universities, utilities, government agencies, and other national research organizations.

Posting Duration:

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of seven (7) calendar days, including the ‘posting date’. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Security Clearance:

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE L-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by the DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

EEO:

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs:

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.

Position Information:

This postdoctoral position is a temporary position for up to one year, which may be renewed at Sandia's discretion up to five additional years. The PhD must have been conferred within five years prior to employment.

Individuals in postdoctoral positions may bid on regular Sandia positions as internal candidates, and in some cases may be converted to regular career positions during their term if warranted by ongoing operational needs, continuing availability of funds, and satisfactory job performance.

Job ID: 694007

Job Family: 92

Regular/Temporary Position: T

Full/Part-Time Status: F

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.