PhD student in Computing Science with focus on Mixed-Precision Algorithmic Solutions

Umeå University is one of Sweden’s largest higher education institutions with over 37,000 students and about 4,700 employees. The University offers a diversity of high-quality education and world-leading research in several fields. Notably, the groundbreaking discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing tool, which was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was made here. At Umeå University, everything is close. Our cohesive campuses make it easy to meet, work together and exchange knowledge, which promotes a dynamic and open culture.

The ongoing societal transformation and large green investments in northern Sweden create enormous opportunities and complex challenges. For Umeå University, conducting research about – and in the middle of – a society in transition is key. We also take pride in delivering education to enable regions to expand quickly and sustainably. In fact, the future is made here.

To the Department of Computing Science, characterized by world-leading research in several scientific fields, we now look for a doctoral student in Sustainable Algorithmic Solutions.

The Department of Computing science has been growing rapidly in recent years where focus on an inclusive and bottom-up driven environment are key elements. The 60 doctoral students within the department compose a diverse group of different nationalities (representing more than 20 countries worldwide), backgrounds and fields. As a doctoral student, you will receive the benefits of support in career development, networking, administrative and technical support functions along with good employment conditions. See more information at:
https://www.umu.se/en/department-of-computing-science/

Is this interesting for you? Apply until March 5th, 2024.

Project description

The EC-funded Center of Excellence for Exascale CFD (CEEC), https://ceec-coe.eu/, which started on January 1st 2023 and runs for four years, specializes in the area of numerical simulations for turbulence. Anyone who has ever flown knows that there can be turbulence, air currents that spin and twist with varying strength and direction. Today there are methods to calculate this seemingly unpredictable phenomenon, but they are complex and require a lot of computing power. Exascale computing offers such supercomputer performance. The main task of the advertised position is to contribute to the algorithmic development and enhancement of the consortium CFD applications. The work involves analysis of the consortium CFD applications using computer arithmetic tools, identifying possibilities for precision cropping, designing and implementing mixed-precision, better scaling, and more energy efficient (sustainable) algorithmic solutions, implementing provided algorithmic solutions, and benchmarking/ testing.

By working in CEEC, a PhD student will have an opportunity to collaborate with leading European researchers from five different countries and to contribute to the algorithmic development driven by production-ready project applications. This will be supported via regular discussions as well as two face-to-face meetings per year. The PhD student will also actively participate in dissemination of project results at various conferences and events.

Roman Iakymchuk’s web-page: https://www.umu.se/en/staff/roman-iakymchuk/

Admission requirements

The general admission requirements for doctoral studies are completion of the second-cycle studies; or completed course requirements of at least 240 ECTS credits, of which at least 60 ECTS credits are at second-cycle level; or an equivalent education from abroad. To fulfil the specific entry requirements to be admitted for studies at third-cycle level in computational science and engineering, the applicant is required to have completed at least 90 credits in computational science and engineering courses, of which at least 30 credits shall have been acquired at second-cycle level. Computational science and engineering courses refer to courses with major quantitative, statistical or computing science elements, such as courses in computing science, mathematics and mathematical statistics. Applicants who in some other system either within Sweden or abroad have acquired largely equivalent skills are also eligible.

Because of the interdisciplinary nature of the project, connecting computational mathematics with the domains of high-performance computing, optimization, computational fluid dynamics and numerical analysis, the applicant needs to be proactive and independent in the identification of topics relevant to the conducted research, and in the acquisition of new knowledge.

The applicant should be equipped with algorithmic thinking and development (preferably from scientific computing), be a skilled programmer (C/C++ and Fortran), be familiar with concepts of high-performance computing (shared memory, accelerators, distributed), as well as the relative libraries (OpenMP, MPI, CUDA). The research will be carried out in collaboration with international researchers from different disciplines, so good collaborative skills are required, and the applicant must be able to speak and write in English fluently.

The most important assessment criteria for the selection are scientific expertise and skills, suitability for the project, and documented ability to work in groups and to independently carry out work tasks.

About the position

The position provides you with the opportunity to pursue PhD studies in computational science and engineering for four years, with the goal of achieving the degree of doctor in computational science and engineering. While the position is mainly devoted to PhD studies (at least 80% of the time), it may include up to 20% department service (usually teaching). If so, the total time for the position is extended accordingly, resulting in a maximum of five years.

The procedure for recruitment for the position is in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance (chapter 12, 2§) and the decision regarding the position cannot be appealed.

The expected starting date is April 1st, 2024 or as otherwise agreed.

Application

Applications must be submitted electronically using the e-recruitment system of Umeå University.

A complete application should contain the following documents:

• A cover letter that motivates your interest in the position and that describes how your qualifications and experience are relevant to the employment (maximum 2 A4 pages with 11pt font). Please include a discussion of your experience in the development of (parallel) software.
• A curriculum vitae
• Copies of completed BSc and/or MSc theses and any other relevant publications
• Copies of degree certificates, including documentation of completed academic courses and obtained grades
• Documentation and description of other relevant experiences or competences
• Contact information of at least two references and a reference letter from each of them

The application must be written in English. If any material is submitted in another language, a translation must be included. Attached documents must be in pdf format. Applications must be submitted electronically using the e-recruitment system of Umeå University, and be received no later than March 5th, 2024.

The Department of Computing Science values gender diversity, and therefore particularly encourages women and those outside the gender binary to apply for the position.

For more information, contact Roman Iakymchuk: [email protected]

We look forward to receiving your application!