PhD student position in Solid and Structural Mechanics

You are invited to apply for a PhD student position in the project "Technical risk analysis of derailments in railway switches". In this project you will perform advanced numerical simulations of vehicle-track interaction and employ statistical analyses to assess risk for derailment in switches. You may also be engaged in field tests.

Information about the project
The methodology for risk analyses developed in the project will be applied to existing railway components under varying operational conditions. It will also provide a basis for evaluation of new component performance and support for upcoming changes in railway regulations. You will be working in close cooperation with the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) and other actors in the railway sector.

The project will be part of the activities within the Swedish National Centre of Excellence in Railway Mechanics CHARMEC – CHAlmers Railway MEChanics. CHARMEC was established in 1995 and is supported by Chalmers, Trafikverket and an industrial interests group comprising of ten partners. The long-term CHARMEC research and knowledge bank aims at reducing the railway's costs for production, environment, operation and maintenance while improving safety, reliability and transport quality. Currently, some 25 research projects are carried out within CHARMEC.

The position will be placed at the Division of Dynamics at the Department of Mechanics and Maritime Sciences (M2). As a PhD student you will belong to the Graduate School of Solid and Structural Mechanics (SSM).

Major responsibilities
Your major responsibilities as PhD student is to pursue your own doctoral studies. This includes developing scientific concepts and communicating research results verbally and in writing, both in English and in Swedish. In addition to research project activities, you will also take courses on the advanced level adequate for the project following the syllabus of the Graduate School SSM.

The position also includes teaching or other departmental duties corresponding to 10-20 % of working hours and is time limited up to 4.5-5 years depending on the amount of teaching and departmental work during your doctoral project.

Contract terms
Full-time temporary employment. The position is limited to a maximum of five years. You will be employed by Chalmers and will receive a salary according to current salary agreements.

Qualifications
To qualify for this position, we would like you to have a Master of Science degree corresponding to at least 240 higher education credits in Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Engineering Physics or similar with emphasis on solid mechanics, numerical methods (e.g. FEM), structural dynamics and engineering statistics.

Project work experience in applied and computational mechanics is meritorious.

The position requires excellent oral and written communication skills in English. Knowledge of the Swedish language is desirable but not a requirement. You will be encouraged to learn Swedish during employment. Chalmers offers Swedish courses. You are expected to teach tutorials in Swedish after two years.

You are expected to take initiatives, work independently when needed and to take responsibility for your work. Further, the project interacts closely with adjacent disciplines and industrial partners. Thus you need to have high collaborative skills. Finally, you need to be able to disseminate results and knowledge within existing and new networks. This includes academia, industry and society at large.

Learn more and apply on Chalmers website: https://www.chalmers.se/en/about-chalmers/Working-at-Chalmers/Vacancies/Pages/default.aspx?rmpage=job&rmjob=9861&rmlang=UK

Application deadline: 11 November, 2021

For questions, please contact:
Professor Elena Kabo, Dynamics
Email: elena.kabo@chalmers.se
Phone: +46 31 772 1302

Docent Björn Pålsson, Dynamics
Email: bjorn.palsson@chalmers.se
Phone: +46 31 772 1491

*** Chalmers declines to consider all offers of further announcement publishing or other types of support for the recruiting process in connection with this position. ***