Postdoctoral position in surface analysis and spectroscopic modelling of metal-organic frameworks...

The Electrochemical and Surface Engineering (SURF) and General Chemistry (AMGC) research groups of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and the Center for Membrane Separations, Adsorption, Catalysis, and Spectroscopy (cMACS, Ameloot group) of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL) are looking for a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher in the field of theoretical modelling and spectroscopic analysis of catalyst materials, under the supervision of Prof. Tom Hauffman, prof. Rob Ameloot and Prof. Frederik Tielens for the Excellence of Science project PHOSPHORE.

The central hypothesis of the PHOSPHORE project is that controlled (meso)porous metal phosphonates (PMP) synthesis conditions allow tuning the phosphonate-metal(IV) interactions for structural and property refinement, enabling their catalytic potential in biorefinery processes. Therefore, it is of crucial importance that the synthesized materials are characterized with advanced surface analytical tools. Within PHOSPORE, the focus will be on ToF-SIMS, XPS, UPS, infrared spectroscopy,… Furthermore, the spectroscopic data obtained should be verified and complemented by spectroscopic modelling. You will work in three multidisciplinary and multicultural research groups, with people from all over the world, oriented to study surface science and electrochemical processes by combining both modelling and experimental approaches, with as main institution VUB. A close collaboration is present with KUL, representing the synthesis know-how of these metal-organic materials. You will guide the PhD students present at both universities, combining the synthesis insights with spectroscopic and modelling data, representing the PHOSPHORE program the surface analytical expertise.