Mechanical Technician (Thin Film Coatings and Laser Surface Modifications) (TTE Programme)

Are you a technician looking for a challenging professional experience to further your career?  If so, joining CERN’s TTE programme may very well give you that challenge.  

The Vacuum Surfaces and Chemistry group in the Technology Department (TE-VSC) is in charge of the development, operation and maintenance of vacuum in the entire CERN accelerator system, where particle beams circulate. The Surface Coating and Chemistry section is in charge of the surface preparation and characterization of the surfaces, which are exposed to the beam vacuum. This includes wet chemical surface treatments, thin film coating by physical vapor deposition and surface and chemical analysis. 

As a Mechanical Technician, you will integrate in a small team operating on two main projects: the thin film coating of components for the High Luminosity LHC upgrade and the laser surface modification of so called beam-screens.

The thin films are made of amorphous carbon and are designed to mitigate the emission of secondary electrons from the surface, which face the beam in ultra-high-vacuum. Their implementation in new and existing parts of LHC is foreseen to improve the machine performance with High Luminosity beams.

Laser treatment of copper surfaces can generate very rough surfaces, which do not reflect visible light (appear black) and reduce the emission of electrons. For this reason they are an attractive technology for future accelerators. An ongoing project at CERN foresees to achieve the integration of such a treatment in tubes of 15 m length as those, which host the particle beam.