Senior Research Scientist

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Job Summary

LIGO Livingston Observatory (LLO) relies on continuing efforts by scientists and engineers to maintain and improve the 4-km detector's displacement sensitivity (and thereby its astrophysical range) and its duty cycle. Together, these goals lead to more frequent observations of gravitational waves recorded by the network of detectors that includes LIGO (USA), Virgo (Europe), and KAGRA (Japan) interferometers.

LIGO seeks a new member of its Science Team at LIGO Livingston. The successful candidate will collaborate closely with the operations team and commissioning scientists at LIGO Livingston Observatory and LIGO Hanford Observatory, together with colleagues at Caltech and MIT. The LLO Science Team tracks and reduces the noise sources that limit the current detector sensitivity; models optical subsystems of the interferometer and compares to data; calibrates the interferometer length sensitivity; investigates and eliminates noise couplings from the external environment of the detector; devises and implements operational methods to improve duty cycle; and carries out R&D projects for future gravitational-wave detectors. In addition to their detector-related roles, Science Team members often contribute to scientific activities of our worldwide collaboration and gravitational-wave network (LSC and IGWN), including next-generation instrument R&D, gravitational-wave observational science, and associated astrophysics. There are continuing opportunities to build new skills and knowledge as the field and LIGO's leading role in it develop.

Essential Job Duties

• Lead LLO's detector calibration team, maintaining the LLO calibration through deep understanding of the detector. Serve as a subject matter expert for calibration fiducials like the photon calibrator system. During commissioning periods, ensure calibration is up to date and correct to allow proper assessment of detector improvements. During and after observing runs, ensure the uncertainty budgets and the final scientific calibration product we release with the gravitational-wave strain data are correct and accurate.
• Co-Chair (there is no overall chair) the LIGO Scientific Collaboration's calibration group, a ~15-member international team primarily responsible for providing LIGO calibration data products to the collaboration and astrophysical community. Lead calibration planning and task specification. Coordinate between the calibration group and other LSC groups such as search groups (e.g., CBC, CW, stochastic), parameter estimation, and GWOSC, and make regular reports to the LSC operations division. Coordinate with counterparts in Virgo and KAGRA collaborations.
• Serve as LLO's science-team expert in the LIGO detector instrumentation, control, and data handling system (CDS), maintaining capability to solve unusual or tricky challenges.
• Mentor and train visiting scientists and early-career colleagues in calibration and instrumentation/analysis techniques.
• Serve as LLO's detection scientist/run coordinator as needed, responding to source detections and leading the rapid response team at LLO.
• Initiate or collaborate in R&D leading to near- and long-term improvements to interferometric gravitational-wave detectors.
• Initiate or collaborate in writing research papers and technical presentations. Serve as a reviewer of papers and proposals, internally and externally.
• Present research results and highlights at national and international conferences.
• Contribute to the overall program of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and the international network (IGWN) as it develops.
• After-hours and weekend work is occasionally required to support commissioning efforts. This position requires occasional travel to other LIGO installations and collaborating institutions in Richland, Washington, Pasadena, California, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and possibly internationally.
• Other duties as assigned.

Basic Qualifications

• A Ph.D. degree in Physics, Engineering, Optics, or a related field. In lieu of a Ph.D., we will consider 6 years of relevant experience.
• A minimum of 8 years of relevant experience (not including time spent earning a Ph.D.) working with interferometers/optical systems, and/or scientific data analysis, and/or feedback control systems, and/or signal processing.
• Successful experience leading technically cutting-edge initiatives to implement or improve high-precision instrumentation.
• Experience working in a multi-disciplinary research environment.
• Possess good verbal and written communication skills, a team attitude, and a high degree of professional discipline.

Preferred Qualifications

• Proficiency with scientific computation, simulation, and data analysis in Python or a similar language.
• Hands-on experience with precision mechanical, optical, and electronics used in ultra-high-vacuum low-contamination experiments.
• Successful experience in the design, commissioning, calibration, and optimization of length and angular sensing and control systems in kilometer-scale gravitational-wave detectors.
• Experience with precision electronic circuit design and/or characterization; with precision electro- and opto-mechanical system design and/or characterization; and with precision optical system design and/or characterization.
• Experience writing and reviewing papers for scientific journals and internal studies.
• Familiarity with good practice in mentoring students and/or staff.

Required Documents

• Resume.