Opportunities

Opportunities at IUCAA

Academic

Faculty Openings

Applications are invited from Indian citizens for faculty positions at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune, India. IUCAA is a premier autonomous research institution set up by the University Grants Commission to promote astronomy and astrophysics in Indian colleges and universities. This is accomplished through an active associateship program and by conducting schools and workshops across the country. IUCAA is also actively engaged in science popularization.

Current research activities at IUCAA span a wide range including Classical and Quantum Gravity, Cosmology, Formation and Evolution of Galaxies, Active Galactic Nuclei, High Energy Astrophysics, Diffuse Matter in Space, Cosmic Magnetic Fields, Solar Physics, Astronomy at X-ray/UV/Optical/Radio wavelengths, Gravitational Wave Physics and Instrumentation. IUCAA is also seeking to build activities in other emerging areas including extrasolar planets.

IUCAA is actively involved in several leading national and international science projects including the Thirty Meter Telescope, the Southern African Large Telescope, India's space based multi-wavelength observatory AstroSat, the Aditya-L1 Solar mission and several others. As a key partner of the LIGO-India consortium, IUCAA has a leading role in the setting up and running of the Gravitational Wave detector in India.

Facilities run by IUCAA include a 2-m optical/near-IR telescope at its Girawali Observatory, a sophisticated Instrumentation Laboratory for development of astronomical instrumentation, a Radio Physics Laboratory for training students and a High Performance Computing centre with a current installed capacity of about 150 Teraflops with over a Petabyte of storage.

Applicants for a faculty position should possess a Ph.D. in Physics (or Astronomy/Astrophysics) and three or more years of post-doctoral research experience.

Appointments will normally be made at the level of Scientist - E (Assistant Professor), but this may be relaxed for exceptionally qualified applicants.

In order to apply kindly send: (a) your CV, (b) List of Publications including your 5 best papers, (c) a summary of your current research activities and future plans, (d) In a separate file, names of at least six experts familiar with your work. These may be mailed electronically to facultyapply@iucaa.in.

Post-doctoral Fellowships
We are now stop accepting the applications for Post-Doctoral Positions.
- Neutron star modelling and Gravitational Wave data analysis
- Spectral and timing properties of high energy emission from X-ray binaries and/or Active Galactic Nuclei
- MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey (MALS)
- Gas flows and galaxy evolution
- Dynamo generation of cosmic magnetic fields
- Characterising the properties of supernova driven turbulence using idealised MHD simulations
- Astrosat Science Support Cell
Important information:
- The last date for receipt of applications is November 30, 2021.
- The last date for submitting referees reports is Devember 05, 2021
- The selected candidates will be informed by the end of March 2022.
- Post-Doctoral position in the field of spectral and timing properties of high energy emission from X-ray binaries and/or Active Galactic Nuclei at IUCAA
  
  Applications are invited for a postdoctoral position with Prof. Ranjeev Misra in the field of spectral and timing properties of high energy emission from X-ray binaries and/or Active Galactic Nuclei. The candidate should have experience in analyzing and interpreting spectral and timing data from AstroSat and other observatories. Knowledge of scripting, creating high level data analysis tools and theoretical computation will be preferred. The postdoc would also be expected to help and teach Ph.D students. For more details, please contact rmisra@iucaa.in.
  
  To Apply: Click here
  
  Selected candidates will be offered a Visiting Fellowship initially for one year, extendable on satisfactory performance. The Fellowship carries an honorarium of Rs.47,000/- upwards p.m. plus HRA as applicable and an annual contingency grant of Rs.40,000/-.
  
  Application Deadline: May 07, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral position in the area of X-ray and/or UV astronomy at IUCAA
  
  Applications are invited for a postdoctoral position in the area of X-ray and/or UV astronomy. The successful candidate will work on "updating calibration of SXT/UVIT-Gratings onboard the Indian astronomy mission AstroSat" and/or "detection of UV sources in the UVIT fields and their spectral/temporal characterisation". The first project requires scientific programming skills, a good knowledge of functionality/responses of X-ray/UV instruments and experience in X-ray data analysis. Applicants with experience in scientific programming, X-ray/UV data analysis techniques, and compact object research are especially encouraged to apply. Successful candidate will spend a good fraction of time on analysing data from the AstroSat mission, writing new tools as required, and interpretation of the data. For more details, please contact gulabd@iucaa.in.
  
  To Apply: Click here
  
  Selected candidates will be offered a Visiting Fellowship initially for one year, extendable on satisfactory performance. The Fellowship carries an honorarium of Rs.47,000/- upwards p.m. plus HRA as applicable and an annual contingency grant of Rs.40,000/-.
  
  Application Deadline: May 07, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral position in Astronomy Education at IUCAA
  
  IUCAA is a national institute for research and education in Astronomy and Astrophysics. IUCAA plans to start work on multiple projects in astronomy education directed at middle school and high school curricula. IUCAA, along with HBCSE-TIFR, Mumbai and in association with the IAU Office of Astronomy Education, Heidelberg, will develop tools for analyzing astronomy curriculum and learning materials at the school level and analyzing the conceptual understanding in astronomy among students and teachers.
  
  IUCAA would like to hire a postdoctoral scholar to fulfill these objectives. This position is open for candidates with research experience in either Astronomy/Astrophysics/Physics or those with research experience in science/mathematics education. The successful candidate would carry out work in an area of astronomy education of her/his choice, while remaining broadly aligned with the goals mentioned above. Persons who have submitted a thesis for the Ph.D. degree may apply. However, if selected, they will be given an appointment only after award of the degree.
  
  The preferred age is below 35 years, can be relaxed for deserving candidates. Please apply enclosing your curriculum-vitae and including the following specific details:
  1. Date of birth
  2. Academic record up to Master's degree
  3. One-page description of PhD Work
  4. Awards and scholarships
  5. List of publications (with a brief note on the most significant publications)
  6. Experience in teaching and science popularization
  7. Names of three referees
  8. A comment on the state of astronomy education in the country and suggested improvements (In one or two pages)
  9. A proposal for the astronomy education project that you would like to take up at IUCAA (In one or two pages)
  Selected candidates will be offered a Visiting Fellowship initially for one year, extendable on satisfactory performance. The Fellowship carries an honorarium of Rs.47,000/- upwards p.m. plus HRA as applicable and an annual contingency grant of Rs.40,000/-.
  
  Application Deadline: April 30, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (SUIT Payload)
  
  General Statement and Description: ISRO's Aditya-L1 mission will be a unique space-based Solar Observatory which will observe the Sun from the vantage location of the first Sun-Earth Lagrange point (L1), about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth. The mission is scheduled to be launched in 2022 and is nominally planned for a five-year lifetime with the possibility of longer operations. The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) payload on board Aditya-L1 will provide full disk images of the Sun in 11 different passbands between 200-400 nm. It will also be capable of locating and tracking interesting areas of the Sun like active regions, flares, prominences etc. The two main science goals that SUIT will address are the magnetic coupling of the solar atmosphere and variation of spatially resolved solar spectral irradiance in near ultraviolet wavelength range, which is central to Sun-climate relations.
  
  The successful candidate shall primarily work on developing pipeline tools for post processing of the data, and testing the tools using ground calibration data. He or she will also be involved in the design, simulations, assembly, integration and testing of the SUIT payload. The candidate will work with the SUIT team mostly at IUCAA, but should be willing to spend extended time at collaborating facilities of ISRO and other institutes.
  
  IUCAA may provide rent free accommodation based on availability and as per IUCAA norms. The fellowship also provides medical benefits as per IUCAA norms.
  
  Qualification & Experience: Candidates who have either submitted their PhD thesis or are already holding a PhD in Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astronomical Instrumentation or other related areas can apply. Some basic skills in programming with Matlab, Interactive Data Language (IDL) and/or Python will be useful. Familiarity in Solar Physics and Solar data analysis will be preferred. The candidate should be willing to learn the requisite abilities quickly. Candidates with experience in space astronomical instrumentation will be given preference.
  
  Application Deadline: April 01, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (SUIT Payload)
  
  General Statement and Description: ISRO's Aditya-L1 mission will be a unique space-based Solar Observatory which will observe the Sun from the vantage location of the first Sun-Earth Lagrange point (L1), about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth. The mission is scheduled to be launched in 2022 and is nominally planned for a five-year lifetime with the possibility of longer operations. The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) payload on board Aditya-L1 will provide full disk images of the Sun in 11 different passbands between 200-400 nm. It will also be capable of locating and tracking interesting areas of the Sun like active regions, flares, prominences etc. The two main science goals that SUIT will address are the magnetic coupling of the solar atmosphere and variation of spatially resolved solar spectral irradiance in near ultraviolet wavelength range, which is central to Sun-climate relations.
  
  The successful candidate shall primarily work on developing pipeline tools for post processing of the data, and testing the tools using ground calibration data. He or she will also be involved in the design, simulations, assembly, integration and testing of the SUIT payload. The candidate will work with the SUIT team mostly at IUCAA, but should be willing to spend extended time at collaborating facilities of ISRO and other institutes.
  
  IUCAA may provide rent free accommodation based on availability and as per IUCAA norms. The fellowship also provides medical benefits as per IUCAA norms.
  
  Qualification & Experience: Candidates who have either submitted their PhD thesis or are already holding a PhD in Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astronomical Instrumentation or other related areas can apply. Some basic skills in programming with Matlab, Interactive Data Language (IDL) and/or Python will be useful. Familiarity in Solar Physics and Solar data analysis will be preferred. The candidate should be willing to learn the requisite abilities quickly. Candidates with experience in space astronomical instrumentation will be given preference.
  
  Application Deadline: April 01, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (Resolving the impact of AGN feedback on gas and star formation through simulations and observations)
  
  General Statement and Description: Applications are invited for a 3-year postdoctoral fellowship position at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA). The position is funded by the CEFIPRA Indo-French Centre for the Promotion of Advanced Research project “Resolving the impact of AGN feedback on gas and star formation through simulations and observations”. The successful candidate will work in close collaboration with Prof. Dipanjan Mukherjee at IUCAA, India and Dr. Nicole Nesvadba at the Côte d'Azur Observatory, Nice, France. The work will involve designing and performing state of the art magnetohydrodynamic simulations of AGN jets interacting with their host galaxy and predicting observable signatures which can be compared with observed data. The candidate can also take an active role in analysing existing observational results as a part of the collaboration.
  
  Qualification & Experience: The candidate must have a Ph.D. degree in astronomy, astrophysics or a related discipline. Experience in numerical simulations will be advantageous. However we encourage applications from all candidates with a background in AGN feedback and/or extragalactic astrophysics, including qualified observers who wish to focus on a simulation project. Applications by women and members of underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged.
  
  Application Deadline: April 06, 2022.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (WALOP Project)
  
  General Statement and Description: Applications are invited for a postdoctoral position at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) to work on the Wide Area Linear Optical Polarimeter (WALOP) project. Two bespoke WALOP instruments are being built to carry out an optical linear polarimetric survey (PASIPHAE: Polar-Areas Stellar Imaging in Polarization High-Accuracy Experiment) simultaneously from a northern (Skinakas, Greece) and a southern (Sutherland, South Africa) site. The high sample density (>100 stars per sq. degree), sensitivity (R< 16.5), low polarization errors (<0.1%) and large area coverage (~1000sq. degrees) of PASIPHAE measurements, augmented by stellar distance data from GAIA and dust cloud distributions from CO maps, will allow creation of a unique tomographic map of the magnetic field structure towards the high Galactic latitude survey regions. The unprecedented combination of depth, precision and breadth will produce a legacy data set over four years of the survey.
  
  Qualification & Experience: The candidate should have experience working with a mixed environment employing optical design tools like Zemax integrated with Python for data generation, analysis and presentation. She/He should be able to augment the capabilities and overcome the limitations of standard optical design software packages through first principle ray tracing techniques which accounts for polarization effects at interfaces, materials, polarization elements etc. Prior experience in complex instrument modelling especially for polarimetry will be of advantage. Familiarity with instrument assembly, integration and testing will add strength to the application.
  
  Application Deadline: September 21, 2020.
  
  Please click here for details.
- Click here to apply for IUCAA's regular Post-doctoral positions
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (SUIT Payload)
  
  General Statement and Description: ISRO's Aditya-L1 mission will be a unique space-based Solar Observatory which will observe the Sun from the vantage location of the first Sun-Earth Lagrange point (L1), about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth. The mission is scheduled to be launched in 2020 and is nominally planned for a five-year lifetime with the possibility of longer operations. The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) payload on board Aditya-L1 will provide full disk images of the Sun in 11 different passbands between 200-400 nm. It will also be capable of locating and tracking interesting areas of the Sun like active regions, flares, prominences etc. The two main science goals that SUIT will address are the magnetic coupling of the solar atmosphere and variation of spatially resolved solar spectral irradiance in near ultraviolet wavelength range, which is central to Sun-climate relations.
  
  Qualification & Experience: Candidates who have either submitted their PhD thesis or are already holding a PhD in Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astronomical Instrumentation or other related areas can apply. Some basic skills in programming with Matlab, Interactive Data Language (IDL) and/or Python will be useful. Familiarity in Solar Physics and Solar data analysis will be preferred. The candidate should be willing to learn the requisite abilities quickly.
  
  Fellowship: As per IUCAA norms which is Rs. 54,000/- per month at present.
  
  Application Deadline: Monday, October 28, 2019.
  
  Please click here for details.

Research Scholars

Junior Research Fellowship in Precision & Quantum Measurement lab (PQM-lab)

Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) is inviting applications for TWO Junior Research Fellow (JRF) positions to work on the following project:

(I) “Sub-micron Resolution Imaging System to Detect Individual Ions/ Atoms”. This project is funded by the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS), Govt. of India.

(II) “Optical clock based accurate time stamping in quantum communication”. This project is funded by Department of Science and Technology (DST) under their flagship Quantum Enhanced Science and Technology (QuEST) program.

For both projects the selected candidates shall work at the Precision & Quantum Measurement lab (PQM-lab: https://pqmlab.iucaa.in/), IUCAA. four years.

Desired qualification and experience:M. Sc. or M. Tech in Physics / Instrumentation / Optical engineering/ other related areas with minimum 60% marks. The candidate must have valid score from CSIR or UGC NET-JRF / NET-LS/ GATE/ INAT/ JEST. Final year students waiting for results can also apply.

Desirable experience in any of the programming languages like C, C++, Python, Matlab, Mathematica / VHDL/ LabVIEW will be useful.

Remuneration/ Fellowship: The selected candidates will receive a monthly fellowship of Rs. 31,000 + HRA (HRA will be provided only if he/she does not avail IUCAA's accommodation).

Depending on performance in first two years, the candidate can be promoted to Senior Research Fellow (SRF) after two years. In case promoted to SRF, the fellowship will be enhanced to Rs. 35,000 + HRA per month.

Application Deadline: July 03, 2022.

Please click here for details.

Junior Research Fellowship in Precision & Quantum Measurement lab (PQM-lab)

Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) is inviting applications for ONE Junior Research Fellow (JRF) position to work on the “Synchronization of the optical atomic clocks located at IUCAA and IISER Pune by Ultra-stable Fiber Optic Channel (UsFOC)” project at its Precision & Quantum Measurement lab (PQM-lab: https://pqmlab.iucaa.in/). This position is funded by the Chanakya Doctoral Fellowship program of I-Hub Quantum Technology Foundation for four years.

Desired qualification and experience:M. Sc. or M. Tech in Physics / Electronics/ Mechanical / Instrumentation / Optical engineering/ other related areas with minimum 60% marks. The candidate must have valid score from CSIR or UGC NET-JRF / NET-LS/ GATE/ INAT/ JEST/ INSPIRE.

Final year students waiting for the final result may also apply, however, upon selection their joining will be accepted upon fulfilling the above-mentioned qualification requirements.

Desirable experience in any of the programming languages like C, C++, Python, Matlab, Mathematica / VHDL/ LabVIEW will be useful.

Application Deadline: April 30, 2022.

Please click here for details.

Junior Research Fellowship in Exploring the nature of Lyman continuum (LyC) emitting sources in the AstroSat-UV Deep Field (AUDF)

Applications are invited for a Junior Research Fellowship for a period of three years based at Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune, India. The position is funded by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on a project titled “Exploring the nature of Lyman continuum (LyC) emitting sources in the AstroSat-UV Deep Field (AUDF)”.

The project consists of two broad areas — construction of a flux limited sample of Lyman continuum sources from the AUDF. Then construct multi-wavelength spectral energy distri-bution using HST and other archival data and derive physical properties of the LyC galaxies. The successful candidate will work under the supervision of the project PI: Kanak Saha

Eligibility Criteria: TThe candidate has to be an Indian nationality with Master degree in Physics/astronomy. The candidate must have qualified any of the national level tests such as CSIR-UGC NET/GATE .
Preference will be given to one having experience in observational astronomy, data analysis such as IRAF, and in one or more of the programming languages e.g., Python, Fortran, C++, IDL.

Remuneration/ Fellowship: The tenure of the Fellowship is for a period of 3 years, renewable annually based on per-formance.

The selected candidate will receive a monthly fellowship of Rs. 31000+HRA (NET/GTE quali-fied). The successful candidate will be provided with on-campus accommodation subject to availability and medical benefits as per IUCAA norms. HRA will not be provided if he/she does not avail IUCAA’s accommodation.

Application Deadline: February 05, 2021.

SPPU-IUCAA joint M.Sc. Physics (Astrophysics) programme
Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) and Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) invite applications for
Please click here to apply.

Important information:
- The last date for receipt of applications is April 30, 2021.
- The last date for submitting referees reports is May 05, 2021
- The selected candidates will be informed by the end of June 2021.

Scientific / Technical / Administrative / Project Staff

Driver [Please click here for the details].

>> Apply online [ Deadline for submission: June 15, 2022 ]

Project Engineer I (Electronics) [Please click here for the details].

>> Apply online [ Deadline for submission: June 30, 2022 ]

Project Trainee (Electronics) [Please click here for the details].

>> Apply online [ Deadline for submission: June 30, 2022 ]

Information about “how to Apply?” for Scientific / Technical / Administrative / Project Staff