Neutron Polarisation and Optics Technician

The European Spallation Source is one of the most exciting, innovative and ground-breaking “Big Science” projects under construction today. Research with neutrons lies behind some of the most important materials and innovations which improve our everyday lives, our health and our environment – and ESS will be the most powerful neutron source for research in the world when it is fully operational in 2027.

ESS is now looking for a Neutron Polarisation and Optics Technician to join our Instrument Technologies team to support our neutron polarisation and neutron optics activities.

About the role:

You will begin by supporting the neutron polarisation equipment construction and neutron optics equipment site acceptance tests, quality control and alignment in collaboration with other teams at ESS, Institute Laue-Langevin (ILL) and other institutes.

No two work days are ever the same. The variety of tasks include, but are not limited to:


• Acquiring technical and safety knowledge of the constituents of neutron polarisation equipment.
• Building neutron polarisation equipment, commissioning and maintaining the equipment at the ESS, including a centralised polarisation system to be built at the ILL.
• Supporting user experiments that use neutron polarisation equipment.
• Building, commissioning and maintaining neutron optics equipment with the NSS Project Division teams.
• Maintaining the neutron polarisation & optics lab facilities and performing other workshop tasks including administrative aspects and documentation, procurement, stock control and inventory.

Shift work and on-call duties will be required as necessary. We will collaborate with the ILL in building a significant part of the equipment, and your work will very likely include a 12-18 month secondment to the ILL in Grenoble, France.

About you:

To thrive with us, you need to be driven, responsive and good at spotting both problems and opportunities. You need to be a highly motivated person who isn’t afraid to get your hands dirty!

First and foremost, we need someone who is suitably qualified and experienced. Ideally, you are a certified professional education in a field of engineering or science and you bring significant experience in an engineering or other highly technical environment. Relevant experience in a similar role is more critical than the type of qualification you hold.

What we are building is similar in complexity to medical equipment prototypes. We therefore need someone who


• Has proven mechanical dexterity and can manipulate precision jobs and assemble complex parts.
• Understands mechanical technical drawings and can perform loading/cutting calculations,
• Has experience with basic workshop equipment such as machining, soldering, for example.

Prior experience with laser systems and laser safety - and with mechanical and electronic processes - would be a distinct advantage.

We are building ESS from the ground up, so we need someone who is comfortable not only following procedures, but also creating them. We need you to be proactive in acquiring new knowledge and developing new skills. The tasks must be done well, on time and often unsupervised - so we need a hands-on self-starter who works in a structured, orderly, responsible and – most importantly – safe way. Formal safety trainings and a safe working history is a definite plus. With people having a diverse level of expertise working together, we're looking for a real team player: Someone who has excellent communication skills, who likes to work with different people, and is flexible in their approach.

The working language of ESS is English but it would be great if you could also work in Swedish as well. For this role, we need someone who can start as soon as possible.

What can we offer?

Aside from the opportunity to work at one of only 4 linear accelerator-based Spallation sources on the whole planet, you can also expect:


• An opportunity to contribute to the future discoveries within neutron science.
• A stunning, brand new workplace filled with innovative minds and brilliant people from across the globe.
• A challenging, exciting and fast-paced work environment.
• Market competitive compensation that is individual and differentiated according to role, responsibilities, individual skills, abilities and achievements.
• 25 days of annual leave, as well as more than 10 days of public holiday and company days off or days with limited working hours.
• Monthly pension contributions on top of your salary.
• Flexible working arrangements and a real work-life balance.
• Interested? We sure hope so.

If you see yourself in what we’re looking for, please provide your CV and motivation letter in English by clicking on “apply” and following the instructions. Please be aware that we can only accept direct applications made via the ESS website.

Certain roles at ESS require health and safety checks, which may be required in the final stages of the recruitment process.

The last day for receiving application is Friday, September 30th 2022 - so submit your application as soon as soon as you can. Please quote the job reference number ESD-15051 in your application.

For more information regarding the ESS recruitment process, please follow this link https://europeanspallationsource.se/ess-recruitment-process or contact Daniel Nordin Baker – Recruitment partner – at daniel.nordin@ess.eu. For further information regarding the position, please contact the Recruiting Manager - Oliver Kirstein -  at oliver.kirstein@ess.eu

For trade union information, please contact Unionen representative Conny Wendt at conny.wendt@ess.eu or SACO/Swedish Association of Graduate Engineers representative Yngve Levinsen at yngve.levinsen@ess.eu.

We look forward to receiving your application soon!