PREP0004192 Infrared Microscopy for Microplastics Researcher

PREP Research Associate

Opportunity No.: PREP0004192

This position is part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. NIST recognizes that its research staff may wish to collaborate with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest, and thus requires that such institutions must be the recipient of a PREP award. The PREP program requires staff from a wide range of backgrounds to work on scientific research in many areas. Employees in this position will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration.

APPLY ONLINE HERE

Infrared Microscopy for Microplastics Researcher

Project Description:

The Material Measurement Laboratory of the National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking qualified persons to advance a novel quantum cascade laser (QCL) infrared (IR) microscopy technique for high-throughput measurement of size distribution and chemical identification of microplastic samples. The position will harness a groundbreaking QCL-IR imaging of microplastics in water by addressing nontrivial measurement problems due to the strong IR absorption by water and strong scattering contribution at <10 µm microplastics. The outputs of this work will help improve measurement assurance for microplastics characterization with less irregularity in sample preparation and more reproducibility in size quantitation. Working at NIST offers the rare opportunity to collaborate with world-class experts in a mission-driven environment, utilizing state-of-the-art microscopes to turn observations into reproducible science. It is a chance to leave a lasting legacy on the circular and champion sustainability by ensuring a foundation of sound measurement science.

Key Responsibilities: 

• Advance the instrumentation for high-throughput QCL-IR microscopy 
• Collect and analyze IR hyperspectral images of microplastics
• Discuss progress and results with NIST staff 
• Present results at internal meetings and occasional meetings with external stakeholders 
• Write papers based on method advancements and datasets collected

Desired Qualifications: 

• U.S. Citizen Preferred
• Ph.D. degree in Chemistry, Physics, Polymer Physics, or a related field 
• 2+ years of experience with IR microscopy 
• Ability to analyze vibrational spectral data 
• Strong oral and written communication skills 

Other Details:

• Full-time: the participant is expected to work 40 hours a week
• Location: the participant will work at the NIST Gaithersburg Campus.
• Duration: this is expected to be a one-year position. Extensions are sometimes granted depending on the availability of funds.
• For questions related to the research project or the nature of the work in this position, please contact Dr. Young Jong Lee (youngjong.lee@nist.gov). For questions related to the online application or NIST PREP more generally, please contact msu-nistprep@morgan.edu.

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Authority: 15 U.S.C. § 278g-1(e)(1) and (e)(3) and 15 U.S.C. § 272(b) and (c)

Purpose: The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) hosts the Professional Research Experience Program (PREP) which is designed to provide valuable laboratory experience and financial assistance to undergraduates, post-bachelor’s degree holders, graduate students, master’s degree holders, postdocs, and faculty.

PREP is a 5-year cooperative agreement between NIST laboratories and participating PREP Universities to establish a collaborative research relationship between NIST and U.S. institutions of higher education in the following disciplines including (but may not be limited to) biochemistry, biological sciences, chemistry, computer science, engineering, electronics, materials science, mathematics, nanoscale science, neutron science, physical science, physics, and statistics. This collection of information is needed to facilitate the administrative functions of the PREP Program.

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