ARCNL: Head of ARCNL’s Materials Department (Associate / Full Professor in Physics)

The Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL) is a groundbreaking public-private partnership hosting intensive research collaboration between ASML, NWO and three Dutch universities, and is located in Amsterdam. ARCNL’s focus is on fundamental physics and chemistry in the context of technologies for (nano)lithography, primarily for the semiconductor industry. ARCNL is composed of three departments: Materials, (EUV)Source and Metrology.

ARCNL is looking for a senior scientist as Head of the Materials Department where you will conduct your research in collaboration with the other research groups at the Center. As a department head, you will be a member of ARCNL’s Management Team. You will be employed by the UvA, where you will be appointed as an Associate or Full Professor at the Institute of Physics.

ARCNL’s Materials Department focuses on the evolution and resilience of surface/interfaces under (extreme) conditions, as the performance limits of materials are continuously challenged in novel lithography technology. The atomic-level insight into and control of their properties are fundamental, important scientific problems in the disciplines of physics and chemistry, and simultaneously highly relevant in the cutting-edge nanolithography processes in the deep-UV and EUV lithography tools of the world-leading semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML. Your and your colleagues’ research in the department therefore forms an important part of the scientific backbone behind continued new developments in the most advanced methods for high-volume production of processor and memory chips.

The Materials Department as it is today spans both experimental and theoretical/modelling activities, and your new research group will bring complementary expertise as well as experienced scientific leadership to the present trio of groups in the department run by enthusiastic, international young group leaders who are all tenure-track faculty members at the University of Amsterdam’s IoP. Their current activities focus on collaborative investigation of the structure, dynamics and mechanical behaviour of surfaces and interfaces in the context of:

• DFT and MD simulations of interfaces in multilayer EUV optics (Emilia Olsson’s group)
• ruthenium-based protective coatings/membranes (Roland Bliem’s group)
• contact phenomena including nanoscale friction and wear (Bart Weber’s group)
  with a common thread throughout centred on the tunability of novel materials from the atomic to the macroscopic scale.

The aim of this combination of state-of-the-art experiment coupled to theory and numerical modelling is to deliver deep insight and truly predictive power, so as to guide future materials responses in the shorter term and inspire new materials strategies in the longer term, in order to keep pace with new challenges arising at each cycle of technological development.

ARCNL, the Materials Department and her partner institutions have an open mind as to which concrete research expertise you need to bring so as to make a great fit. The objective is energetic, enjoyable and productive collaborations, yielding highly visible science and promising avenues for ASML to explore further. For example, you could be expert in materials synthesis, imaging techniques (lab or synchrotron-based), in light-matter interaction, electrochemistry or multiscale modelling. We reiterate our openness to other materials-based approaches not mentioned here, so make your argument to us that they are effective and can be up to the challenge. 

Naturally, the department and your new group has access to the various facilities at ARCNL which include advanced and high-powered lasers, imaging and metrology systems, as well as thin film deposition, surface science and tribology facilities. Local and national computational resources are on-site in Amsterdam Science Park. The unique partnership structure of ARCNL means that – besides strong connections with ASML Research (in Veldhoven in the southern part of the Netherlands), your group is also very welcome at the NanoLab at our neighboring institute AMOLF as well as feeling completely at home in the labs and theory activities of the University of Amsterdam (UvA), which span both the IoP and HIMS – the chemistry research institute. Should your research benefit from connections within the physics department of the VU University, or the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials in Groningen, both of these are easy to arrange.

The ideal candidate has a strong academic track record, proven leadership, mentoring and communication skills. The Head of Department plays a key role in representing the Materials activities at ARCNL and has a leadership role in the ongoing alignment activities with ASML Research. You will also act as an advisor/mentor within the department, for example in terms of research directions of the whole team, supervision of junior researchers and grant acquisition. 

We offer an attractive embedding and support package, including competitive start-up funds, budget for two junior researchers and access to state-of-the-art facilities. High-level technical support will be provided by dedicated group technicians and by the technical support departments (electronic, software and mechanical) of AMOLF.

As a group leader and Head of Department, you will:
• Initiate a novel research program, aligned with ASML Research, in the Materials Department;
• Direct your own group members and supervise the projects within your group;
• Be responsible for the budget, the planning, and the quality of the projects in the group;
• Publish your work in leading international journals;
• Present the work at conferences and research institutes in the Netherlands and abroad;
• Collaborate actively with the other research groups at ARCNL, in particular those working on materials, surfaces and thin films;
• Establish and maintain an active collaboration with ASML Research;
• Develop and maintain external relations, both nationally and internationally;
• Acquire national and international financial support to expand the group;
• Contribute actively to the positioning of the field, both nationally and internationally;
• Be an active member of the staff of the Institute of Physics (IoP) of the University of Amsterdam (UvA);
• Contribute to the joint physics teaching program of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and the Vrije University Amsterdam (VU).

About ARCNL

The Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL ) focuses on the fundamental physics and chemistry involved in current and future key technologies in nanolithography, primarily for the semiconductor industry. ARCNL is a public-private partnership between the Dutch Research Council (NWO ), the University of Amsterdam (UvA ), the Vrije University Amsterdam (VU ), the University of Groningen (RUG ) and the semiconductor equipment manufacturer ASML, and consists of approximately 100 scientists and support staff. ARCNL is located in the Amsterdam Science Park, The Netherlands. For more information, visit www.arcnl.nl . Within ARCNL, the universities are the main employers for the senior academic staff. The present vacancy will be hosted by the University of Amsterdam through its Institute of Physics (IoP).

About the UvA Institute of Physics

The mission of theInstitute of Physics (IoP) is to carry out excellent research in the field of experimental and theoretical physics, to provide inspiring teaching within the physics and other curricula and to transfer our knowledge of and enthusiasm for physics to society. The IoP has over 60 faculty and 220 researchers in total. Research at IoP is organized in three research divisions: theVan der Waals-Zeeman Institute for Experimental Physics (WZI) , theInstitute for Theoretical Physics Amsterdam (ITFA) and theInstitute for High-Energy Physics (IHEF) . The position will formally be based within WZI, which performs research in the areas of Quantum Materials, Soft Matter, and Quantum Gases & Quantum Information.

The position will be filled at the level of Associate or Full Professor, depending on qualifications. Start dates are negotiable. The starting salary will be in accordance with university regulations for academic personnel, and depending on experience and qualifications. It will range from a minimum of € 5.506 gross per month up to a maximum of € 7.362 gross per month for associate professors (salary scales 13-14), or from a minimum of € 6.099 gross per month up to a maximum of € 8.881 gross per month for full professors (salary scale H2), based on full-time employment.

This is exclusive 8% holiday allowance and 8.3% end-of-year bonus. A favorable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants.
The collective labour agreement Dutch Universities  is applicable.

Are you curious about our extensive package of secondary employment benefits like our excellent opportunities for study and development? Take a look here .
Further information
Do you have any questions or do you require additional information? Please contact:
Dr. Marjan Fretz, Manager of Operations ARCNL: [email protected] or +31 20 851 7100