News

The second ECIS webinar is scheduled for Jan 23, at 1 pm CET.
The webinar title is "Fundamental aspects of wetting – drop friction", and the speakers are Prof. Hans-Jürgen Butt (Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, Germany) and Prof. Joël de Coninck (University of Mons, Belgium).
You are kindly invited to register at:
https://www.linxs.se/events/2024/01/23/ecis-fundamental-aspects-of-wetting-drop-friction-linxs-partner-event
Questions posed by registered members of the audience will be addressed to the speakers. Please send your questions in advance to either:
• Epameinondas Leontidis, leontidis.epameinondas@ucy.ac.cy or
• Pierandrea Lo Nostro, pierandrea.lonostro@unifi.it
The event will take place on Zoom at this link:

https://lu-se.zoom.us/j/62405917145

The timing is not great for Australia, but the webinar will be recorded and posted afterwards alongside the first one here: https://www.ecis-web.eu/conferences/ecis-webinars-on-fundamentals/

Fonterra is advertising for a permanent Senior Research Scientist / Research Scientist at their Research and Development Centre in Palmerston North, New Zealand

This role asks for research experience in the application of polymer science, colloidal science, or rheology.

It could be suitable for a PhD or PostDoc who is finishing their current project. Equally anyone with a good university-based research career looking for an industry role could also apply.

Here are the details: https://fonterrakf.avature.net/careers/JobDetail?jobId=7236&source=Fonterra.com

A two year post-doctoral position in the application of neutron based techniques to food science is offered under the Global Neutron Scientists (GNEUS program) under a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Action based at the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Zentrum in Munich Germany.

Colloidal food gels consist of networks of aggregated molecules, most commonly proteins, which interrupt the ability of the hydrated structure to flow.  Here we would build on our work linking the fractal scaling of the network with the mechanical properties which are important for food processing and the sensory experience. In this project we will examine the use of micro-organisms to form food gels with small angle neutron scattering particularly in the context of dairy gels.  Ultimately we hope to extend this  work to include fermentation approaches to the production of vegetable protein based gels as meat substitutes.  The project involves collaboration between major international neutron sources: NIST Center for Neutron Research, the Institute Laue Langevin and the Paul Scherrer Institute.  

https://gneus.eu/topics-supervisors/topic-56/

Applications due 17 Jan

Email Chris Garvey (christopher.garvey@tum.de) and/or consult website https://gneus.eu/  for application details.

A postdoc position is available at ID02 beamline, ESRF in Grenoble,
France for immediate recruitment. This beamline is a multipurpose
SAXS/WAXS/USAXS/XPCS instrument for time resolved studies of soft matter
and biophysical systems. The postdoc is expected to spend 50% for user
support in the form of local contact and remaining for inhouse research
and development. In particular, for further developing time-resolved
stopped-flow SAXS and allied methods for probing the spontaneous
self-assembly processes in amphiphilic and charged soft matter systems.
If interested, the candidate can contact directly Dr. T. Narayanan
(narayan@esrf.fr) with a brief CV.

The Theo Murphy Initiative (TMI) was established by the Royal Society to further scientific discovery. The fund is administered by the Australian Academy of Science and provides grant funding to support career development opportunities for Australia’s early- and mid-career researchers (EMCRs) in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Applicants will need to demonstrate how the proposed activity will support EMCRs knowledge development in the relevant STEM related field(s) of research.

Applicants can request up to a maximum A$5,000 per person towards eligible mobility, accessibility, and carer expenses for a single event, once per 12-month period.

The call for applications for all three funding streams will open on 25th September through the Academy's website and SmartyGrants, with the application deadline set for 5 pm (AEDT) on 6th November 2023.

For more information:

https://www.science.org.au/supporting-science/awards-and-opportunities/theo-murphy-initiative-australia

2x New Funded PhD Projects: Soft Particle Mechanics at the University of Auckland

We are currently recruiting for 2 x fully-funded PhD studentships to work on biophysical studies and technology development involving mechanical measurements of small, soft particles. These studentships represent a rare opportunity to carry out transdisciplinary work collaborating with a range of highly-skilled academic groups. Students will be affiliated with two of New Zealand’s Centres of Research Excellence (the MacDiarmid Institute and the Dodd-Walls Centre).

• Student 1 will carry out collaborative experiments using small, soft microparticles, probing the limits of what can be achieved. They will use the resulting data to develop the models and methods required to measure mechanical properties. See this link for full project details.
• Student 2 will focus on the hardware required for technological development, and will work to continuously improve the technology based on user feedback. This work will combine microfluidic fabrication with electronics, and eventually with optics. See this link for full project details.

Review of applications is starting immediately and will continue until the positions are filled, with the aim of commencing the project by the start of 2024.

Contact A/ Prof. Geoff Willmott for more info: g.willmott@auckland.ac.nz

Rita Cornforth Fellowship

The Rita Cornforth Fellowship was established to honour the pioneering contributions of Lady Rita Cornforth (1915-2012), one of Australia’s most important chemists of the last century. She pioneered the synthesis of important natural products such as penicilliamine, steroids and the stereochemistry of molecules involved in the biosynthesis of cholesterol. In recognition of her work, in 1996 the Research School of Chemistry established the Rita Cornforth Fellowship, dedicated to promoting women in science.

For more information on the opportunity and requirements please see:

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/unijobs/listing/350793/rita-cornforth-fellowship-professor-associate-professor-senior-lecturer-in-biological-chemistry/?TrackID=315031&BatchID=3022&cmpid=JBE_TL_20230908_jobtitle&utm_source=jbe&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=JBE_TL_20230908_jobtitle_job3

Murdoch University has 2 positions for Lecturer/Senior Lecturer in Chemistry currently open. For details please see:

https://murdoch.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/MurdochCareers/job/Perth-WA/Senior-Lecturer-in-Chemistry_JR101464

Abstract submission for this conference has been extended until the 11th September 2023. Please see the flyer for full details of the conference.

AKRC 2023 Flyer_Extended abstract submission.pdf

A Sales Engineer Position is available at ATA Scientific. For details please see:

https://www.atascientific.com.au/scientific-instruments-sales-engineer-position/