PhD Student - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN is the world’s largest particle accelerator, operating at the highest energies ever reached in the laboratory. The ATLAS experiment (atlas.ch) is one of two general purpose detectors exploring this energy frontier. In 2012 we verified the last component in our current knowledge, the Standard Model, by discovering the Higgs boson. Now the emphasis is on searches for phenomena beyond the Standard Model, to expand our knowledge and hopefully become able to answer some of the big open questions in our understanding of Nature. For instance, what is the nature of Dark Matter? Are the quarks and leptons fundamental, or are they composed of smaller objects? What is the sources of the observed difference in matter and anti-matter in the Universe? The LHC is collecting a large data set at a new record-energy, and with ATLAS we will explore this vast new energy range. We invite a PhD-student to join us in this research.

This position is part of the INSIGHTS (International Training Network of Statistics for High Energy Physics and Society) Marie Curie Innovative Training Network, a 4-year project for the development of 12 PhD students. INSIGHTS is a collaboration between top European universities and companies from the United Kingdom (Royal Holloway University of London, University of Edinburgh), Italy (PANGEA, University of Naples, INFN), the Netherlands (NIKHEF), Germany (Max Plank Institute), Switzerland (CERN), Sweden (Lund University) and Norway (University of Oslo). The consortium includes world-leading researchers in areas such as statistics and high energy physics and is focused on applying latest advances in statistics and in particular, machine learning to particle physics.

The common network training activity will be based on several events; the main event will be the first pan-European school of advanced statistics. The training experience will be further enhanced by the internships that the students will undertake at different nodes and partner organizations, most of which are in the private sector. In addition to the scientific research and training, complementary training (such as communication and management) will enhance researchers' career prospects in both the public and private sectors.

Job assignment

The main task for the doctoral student will be to focus on his or her research education which includes contributing to research projects but also to study courses at research level.

The successful candidate will work on analysis of ATLAS data, in particular on the search of new exotic Higgs bosons, and collaborate with other INSIGHTS PhD students within the network to develop statistical methods.

Doubly-charged scalar fields are predicted by many beyond-the-Standard Model models as a means to explain neutrino masses as mixing, as well as dark matter. The focus would be on optimizing sensitivity in the decay channels with hadronically decaying tau leptons, in particular on the likelihood selection and the charge misidentification probability. Part of the project will be about the investigation of novel trigger techniques to be implemented after the long LHC shutdown. In addition to applying and developing statistical tools to the physics analysis, the successful candidate will also get to apply statistical tools to financial problems during the internship.

A further part of the work is an ATLAS authorship qualification task that will be chosen taking into account both the responsibilities of the institute as well as the interests and capabilities of the candidate. Additionally, some activities connected to R&D for future experiments and/or upgrades of ATLAS could be included.

The successful candidate will have the possibility to help with supervising Bachelor’s and Master students, and to assist in teaching basic physics courses.

The activities are located at the Department of Physics at Lund University. However, frequent visits as well as a 4-month internship at CERN to work with collaborators and with supervision by Dr. L. Moneta from the INSIGHT network are foreseen.

In addition to the academic tasks, the position includes a 5-month industry internship in Rome with PANGEA Formazione, to develop software using the statistical methods developed for physics analysis and used for society.

Participation in network events and activities is expected by the candidate and included in the job assignment. Attendance and presentations at summer schools and national and international conferences will be encouraged.

Entry requirements

A formal requirement for doctoral studies in physics is:

• a university degree on advanced level within a related field, such as a Master's degree in physics or equivalent, or
• substantial advanced course work at the Master level, or comparable, including an independent research project.

Furthermore, the acceptance is based on the estimated ability to accomplish postgraduate studies.

Other requirements:

To satisfy the Marie Sklodowska-Curie mobility criteria, you must not have resided or carried out your main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Sweden for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to the start date (short stays such as holidays and/or compulsory national service are not taken into account).

Good knowledge in spoken and written English is a requirement.

Basis of Assessment

Selection to postgraduate studies is based on the expected ability to perform well in the studies. The evaluation of the ability to perform well is based primarily on the results of studies at the basic and advanced levels, in particular:

• Knowledge and skills relevant to postgraduate studies within the research area, such as a broad and thorough preparation in physics. This can be documented by appended documents.
• Estimated ability to work independently and the ability to formulate and solve scientific questions. This ability can be established, for example, based on undergraduate research experiences, a Master's thesis or in a discussion of scientific problems during a possible interview.
• Skills in written and oral communication.
• Other experience relevant to postgraduate studies, such as professional experience.
• The applicant should have experience in software and programming (C++/Python).
• The applicant should be interested in working in an international environment since a lot of the activities will be at CERN and other network locations.

Other assessment criteria:

Lund University welcomes applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences. We regard gender equality and diversity as a strength and an asset.

We consider good cooperation ability, drive and independent work ability as positive personal attributes.

The selection of the successful candidate will be based on the results of studies at the basic and advanced levels, the requirements indicated above, and the ability to cope with the challenges outlined in the anticipated assignments.

Terms of employment

A PhD position is an employment with the main duty to be engaged in PhD studies according to the study plan. The duration of PhD studies is 4 years full time studies. In addition, those appointed to doctoral student position may be required to work with educational tasks, research and technical/administrative duties at a level of at most 20% of full time. The position is then extended correspondingly, however not longer than corresponding to 5 years full time employment. PhD positions are subject to special regulations. These can be found in the Swedish Higher Education Ordinance (SFS 1993:100, ch. 5, with updates). Only those who are or have been admitted to PhD-studies may be appointed to PhD position.

Application procedure

Apply online! Only applications entered through the online system will be considered. Applications must contain a covering letter in which applicants describe themselves and their particular research interests. Applications must also include a CV, a copy of the applicant’s Master’s thesis (or a summary text if the thesis is not yet completed), contact details of at least two references (or preferentially that the reference letters are submitted directly to PhD-position@hep.lu.se by the references), copies of grade certificates, and any other documents that the applicant wishes to refer to. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Applicants are also required to answer the job specific questions, if that is the first step of the application process.

Please submit your applications here: https://lu.mynetworkglobal.com/en/what:job/jobID:PA2017/4163/

Last day of applying: 2018-02-28

Starting date: 2018-04-02, or according to agreement

Remarks

We ask companies dealing with advertising job openings and staffing companies to refrain from seeking contact with us since we are bound by contracts in the governmental system.

The English version of this announcement is an interpretation of national formalities expressed in the Swedish text. In case of uncertainties, the Swedish text applies.

For further information please Contact:

Else LYTKEN, Caterina DOGLIONI PhD-position@hep.lu.se