Research Engineer I/II/Senior (open rank)

Overview

Georgia Tech prides itself on its technological resources, collaborations, high-quality student body, and its commitment to building an outstanding and diverse community of learning, discovery, and creation. We strongly encourage applicants whose values align with our institutional values, as outlined in our Strategic Plan. These values include academic excellence, diversity of thought and experience, inquiry and innovation, collaboration and community, and ethical behavior and stewardship. Georgia Tech has policies to promote a healthy work-life balance and is aware that attracting faculty may require meeting the needs of two careers.

About Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech is a top-ranked public research university situated in the heart of Atlanta, a diverse and vibrant city with numerous economic and cultural strengths. The Institute serves more than 45,000 students through top-ranked undergraduate, graduate, and executive programs in engineering, computing, science, business, design, and liberal arts. Georgia Tech's faculty attracted more than $1.4 billion in research awards this past year in fields ranging from biomedical technology to artificial intelligence, energy, sustainability, semiconductors, neuroscience, and national security. Georgia Tech ranks among the nation's top 20 universities for research and development spending and No. 1 among institutions without a medical school.

Georgia Tech's Mission and Values

Georgia Tech's mission is to develop leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. The Institute has nine key values that are foundational to everything we do:

1. Students are our top priority.
2. We strive for excellence.
3. We thrive on diversity.
4. We celebrate collaboration.
5. We champion innovation.
6. We safeguard freedom of inquiry and expression.
7. We nurture the wellbeing of our community.
8. We act ethically.
9. We are responsible stewards.

Over the next decade, Georgia Tech will become an example of inclusive innovation, a leading technological research university of unmatched scale, relentlessly committed to serving the public good; breaking new ground in addressing the biggest local, national, and global challenges and opportunities of our time; making technology broadly accessible; and developing exceptional, principled leaders from all backgrounds ready to produce novel ideas and create solutions with real human impact.

About the Institute for Matter and Systems at the Georgia Institute of Technology

The Institute for Matter and Systems (IMS) is one of Georgia Tech's Interdisciplinary Research Institutes, dedicated to shaping the future through innovations in materials, devices, and systems. IMS manages Georgia Tech's flagship academic cleanroom and nanofabrication facilities, empowering faculty, students, and collaborators from around the world to explore and build the technologies of tomorrow. These facilities support a wide spectrum of research from foundational discoveries in physics and materials science to next-generation technologies in areas such as microelectronics, quantum materials, neuromorphic systems, photonics, biomedical devices, and energy solutions. These are just a few examples of the transformative projects IMS enables through its interdisciplinary mission and world-class infrastructure.

Atlanta, GA

As a Research Engineer at IMS, you will be at the heart of Georgia Tech's fabrication ecosystem; helping drive discoveries, enable high-impact research, and collaborate on technologies that span from atomically precise structures to fully functional prototypes. You will work alongside leading researchers, students, and industrial innovators, providing hands-on technical support, developing and refining fabrication processes, and helping bring breakthrough ideas to life.

This position offers opportunities for meaningful contributions to scientific publications, research proposals, and cross-disciplinary innovations. Whether you are passionate about science, the tools, the teaching, or the challenge of pushing boundaries, this role will immerse you in the full lifecycle of micro/nanofabrication in a highly collaborative environment.

Job Duty 1 - Lead Cleanroom Equipment and Infrastructure

• Take ownership of critical fabrication tools in lithography, etching, deposition, or metrology, ensuring maximum uptime and performance.
• Perform baseline tests, preventive maintenance, calibrations, and tool upgrades to meet research demands.
• Help evaluate and install new equipment and customize systems to support emerging processes and advanced device structures.

Job Duty 2 - Enable Cutting-Edge Fabrication and Process Development

• Collaborate with researchers on projects across a wide range of applications.
• Develop and document robust, reproducible fabrication processes tailored to advanced research needs.
• Troubleshoot fabrication challenges, optimize materials integration, and contribute to process innovation.

Job Duty 3 - Educate and Empower Users

• Train and mentor students, postdocs, and visiting scientists in tool use, fabrication methodology, and cleanroom safety protocols.
• Maintain comprehensive SOPs and safety documentation to ensure quality and compliance.
• Support short courses, workshops, and seminars that enhance technical literacy and fabrication skills.

Job Duty 4 - Collaborate on Research and Publication

• Actively contribute to research projects that leverage IMS infrastructure, including collaborative efforts with internal groups, industry partners, and federally funded initiatives.
• Participate in proposal writing, technical reporting, and co-authoring of journal publications or conference papers.
• Support rapid prototyping and scale-up of novel technologies in areas such as neuromorphic devices, hybrid integration, MEMS/NEMS, and beyond.

Job Duty 5 - Drive Innovation and Outreach

• Champion continuous improvement in tool reliability, process capabilities, and user satisfaction.
• Participate in outreach initiatives such as facility tours, public engagement events, technical symposia, and student recruitment efforts.
• Help identify new research trends and emerging technologies to expand IMS capabilities and impact.

This position vacancy is an open rank announcement. Final job offer will be dependent on candidate qualifications in alignment with Research Faculty ranks as outlined in section 3.2.1 of the Georgia Tech Faculty Handbook (https://www.policylibrary.gatech.edu/faculty-handbook/3.2.1-research-faculty-hiring-and-promotion=-guidelines)

Research Engineer I

• Bachelor's Degree in engineering/science or related field.

Research Engineer II

• A Master's degree in science, engineering or related area, and three (3) years of relevant full-time experience after completion of that degree, or
• A Master's degree in science, engineering or related area, and five (5) years of relevant full-time experience after completion of a bachelor's degree, or
• A Doctoral degree

Senior Research Engineer

• A Master's degree and seven (7) years of relevant full-time experience after completion of that degree, or
• A Master's degree and nine (9) years of relevant full-time experience after completion of a Bachelor's degree, or
• A Doctoral degree and four (4) years of relevant full-time experience after completion of a Bachelor's degree.

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Physics, or a closely related field.
• Significant hands-on experience with micro/nanofabrication in a cleanroom environment.
• Expertise in one or more process areas: photolithography, dry/wet etching, thin film deposition (ALD, PVD, LPCVD), or metrology.
• Familiarity with cleanroom protocols, safety standards, and process troubleshooting.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative, and multidisciplinary environment.
• Preferred: Experience in academic or shared-use cleanrooms, student mentoring, or research publication.
• Bonus: Proficiency with AutoCAD, KLayout, MATLAB, or similar design/simulation tools.

Please provide a list 3 professional references.

Cecelia Jones, cecelia.jones@gatech.edu

The University System of Georgia is comprised of our 26 institutions of higher education and learning as well as the System Office. Our USG Statement of Core Values are Integrity, Excellence, Accountability, and Respect. These values serve as the foundation for all that we do as an organization, and each USG community member is responsible for demonstrating and upholding these standards. More details on the USG Statement of Core Values and Code of Conduct are available in USG Board Policy 8.2.18.1.2 and can be found on-line at https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section8/C224/#p8.2.18_personnel_conduct.

Additionally, USG supports Freedom of Expression as stated in Board Policy 6.5 Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom found on-line at https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section6/C2653.

The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. The University is committed to maintaining a fair and respectful environment for all. To that end, and in accordance with federal and state law, Board of Regents policy, and University policy, Georgia Tech provides equal opportunity to all faculty, staff, students, and all other members of the Georgia Tech community, including applicants for admission and/or employment, contractors, volunteers, and participants in institutional programs, activities, or services. Georgia Tech complies with all applicable laws and regulations governing equal opportunity in the workplace and in educational activities.

Georgia Tech prohibits discrimination, including discriminatory harassment, on the basis of race, ethnicity, ancestry, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, disability, genetics, or veteran status in its programs, activities, employment, and admissions. This prohibition applies to faculty, staff, students, and all other members of the Georgia Tech community, including affiliates, invitees, and guests. Further, Georgia Tech prohibits citizenship status, immigration status, and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, and recruitment, except where such restrictions are required in order to comply with law, regulation, executive order, or Attorney General directive, or where they are required by Federal, State, or local government contract.

More information on these policies can be found here: https://www.usg.edu/policymanual/section6/c2714 Board of Regents Policy Manual | University System of Georgia (usg.edu).

The candidate of choice will be required to pass a pre-employment background screening. http://policylibrary.gatech.edu/employment/pre-employment-screening.