PostDoc in Formal Analysis of Autonomous Cyber-Physical Systems

Our group is looking for candidates interested in conducting independent research in the area of formal analysis of autonomous cyber-physical systems (ACPS). ACPS have great potential to improve our ways of life, increasing mobility, cutting costs, and saving lives. Considering the complexity of the environments these systems operate in, ACPS increasingly rely on learning-enabled components to perform a variety of challenging decision-making tasks. The use of such components is projected to grow but with it also the concern of using ACPS in safety-critical applications. This raises the question of how we need to adapt the development process to build safe and reliable learning-enabled ACPS.

The candidate will work on developing a new generation of design and verification techniques, rooted in formal methods, to enable and support the development of assured ACPS. Topics of interest are (but are not limited to): compositional contract-based design, compositional correct-by-design methods, specification formalism for expressing properties of ACPS, statistical verification, and runtime verification under uncertainty.

Information about the division and the department
The Group for Safe and Trustworthy Autonomous Reasoning (STARlab) is part of the Computing Science (CS) division in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE). Led by Dr. Hazem Torfah, the goal of the research group is to develop theoretical foundations and techniques for the construction of safe, reliable, and secure autonomous cyber-physical systems. Its research spans from formal specification, verification, and synthesis, to runtime verification. Currently, the main focus is on developing methods and tools for: runtime assurance, the development of runtime monitoring approaches for the safe operation of ACPS; quantitative verification, particularly combining formal verification and statistical learning; specification, the design of specification languages for capturing properties of ACPS. We are particularly interested in the application domain of autonomous driving and interact closely with leading national and international academic and industrial groups working in this field. In STAR we seek to create a vibrant and collaborative environment where students and postdocs are supported in their pursuit of challenging research questions.

This position is funded by the Wallenberg AI, Autonomous Systems, and Software Program (WASP). WASP is Sweden’s largest individual research program and provides unique opportunities for achieving international research excellence with industrial relevance.

The CSE department is a joint department at Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg, with activities on two campuses in the city of Gothenburg. The department is divided into four divisions and employs around 270 people from over 30 countries. Research in the department has a wide span, from theoretical foundations to applied systems development. We provide high-quality education at the Bachelor's, Master's, and graduate levels, offering over 120 courses each year. We also have extensive national and international collaborations with academia, industry, and society.

Our aim is to actively improve our gender balance in both our department and division. Equality and diversity are substantial foundations in all activities at Chalmers. As an employee of Chalmers and the CSE department, students are given the opportunity to contribute to our active work within the field of equality and diversity.

Major responsibilities
As a Postdoctoral researcher your main responsibility is to lead a research project in collaboration with the project PIs and drive its implementation (80%). The selected candidate will also mentor and co-supervise junior researchers and teach on a graduate level (20%).

The research entails developing and implementing scientific ideas, establishing research collaborations, communicating your results orally or in written form via scientific venues, including in journals and at conferences.

Qualifications
To qualify for the position you must hold a doctoral degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or other related disciplines, awarded no more than three years prior to the application deadline (according to the current agreement with the Swedish Agency for Government Employers). You should have a good track-record of publications. Experience in at least one of the following fields of research: cyber-physical systems, formal methods, data science, or artificial intelligence.

You also need to have excellent writing and speaking of English. Knowledge of Swedish is not a prerequisite for consideration.

Contract terms
This postdoc position is a full-time temporary employment for two years.

We offer
Chalmers offers a cultivating and inspiring working environment in the coastal city of Gothenburg. 
Read more about working at Chalmers and our benefits for employees.

Chalmers aims to actively improve our gender balance. We work broadly with equality projects, for example the GENIE Initiative on gender equality for excellence. Equality and diversity are substantial foundations in all activities at Chalmers.

Application procedure
The application should be marked with Ref 20230450 and written in English. The application should be sent electronically and be attached as PDF-files, as below. Maximum size for each file is 40 MB. Please note that the system does not support Zip files.

CV: (Please name the document as: CV, Surname, Ref. number) including:
• CV, include complete list of publications
• Previous teaching and pedagogical experiences
• Two references that we can contact.

Personal letter: (Please name the document as: Personal letter, Family name, Ref. number)
2-3 pages where you:
• Introduce yourself
• Describe your previous research fields and main research results
• Describe your future goals and future research focus

Other documents:
• Attested copies of completed education, grades and other certificates.

Use the button at the foot of the page to reach the application form.

Application deadline: 2024-04-15

For questions, please contact:
Assistant Professor Hazem Torfah
Computing Science Division
hazemto@chalmers.se