Postdoc in Thin-Film Synthesis of AI-Generated Materials for Light Trapping DTU Nanolab

DTU Nanolab seeks a talented and motivated postdoctoral researcher for a 2-year position in thin-film materials discovery. The goal of this project is to synthesize thin-film materials for light trapping and measure their relevant properties. The search space for the materials is almost the entire periodic table. For this reason you will have access to an absolutely world-unique suite of thin-film deposition and processing setups heavily customized for exploratory materials research. This includes the big three techniques (sputtering evaporation and CVD) with access to 5 reactive gases for anion incorporation and retention from 150 K to 1400 K temperature and from 1E-7 mbar to atmospheric pressure. All tools are glovebox-integrated and set up for high-throughput deposition of combinatorial thin-film libraries. The lab is located in Denmarks national facility for semiconductor fabrication with very high safety standards.

You will be part of the LightTrap project funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation and led by Associate Professor Mikkel Schmidt (DTU Compute). In LightTrap we will use AI to accelerate the discovery of new optical materials and that enhance the performance of thin-film solar cells. LightTrap covers the entire discovery chain from ab initio calculations and photonic simulations to materials synthesis and nanostructuring all guided by advanced AI algorithms to generate novel materials with targeted optical properties. More information can be found in the followingNews post.

Responsibilities and qualifications
Your overall focus will be to synthesize and characterize new thin-film materials identified by AI and by physics-based first-principles calculations with the goal of finding suitable properties for light trapping i.e. a combination of high refractive index and broad transparency region.

You will be supervised by Associate Prof. Andrea Crovetto and willwork closely with LightTrap colleagues at DTU Compute and DTU is very important that you are willing to work and coordinate activities with these other researchers as a team.

Your primary tasks will be to:

• Attempt the synthesis of AI-generated thin-film materials by appropriate combinations of vacuum-based combinatorial deposition techniques.
• Characterize thin-film combinatorial libraries using automated mapping techniques including XRD EDX and XPS and optical spectroscopy.
• Supervise BSc MSc and potentially PhD student projects that are relevant to your research
• Contribute to teaching courses relevant to your project at the department
• Expand our current data infrastructure capabilities for batch analysis visualization and management of high-throughput experimental data based on the open-source NOMAD database model ( and proactively meet with other team members in the LightTrap project including computational scientists to exchange information and coordinate upcoming work

We expect you to have substantial experience with (at least) reactive sputtering and reactive annealing of thin film materials preferably involving non-oxide non-nitride and non-III-V compounds. You should also have solid experience with high-throughput characterization techniques and related data analysis methods for thin-film materials as well as with the development of a local NOMAD Oasis data infrastructure for experimental materials science. The ability to work both independently and collaboratively is important along with a track record of high-quality peer-reviewed publications as lead author. Finally you should be motivated to follow research tasks through to completion and to summarize the outcomes in several scientific articles during your postdoc position.

As a formal qualification you must hold a PhD degree (or equivalent).

We offer
DTU is a leading technical university globally recognized for the excellence of its research education innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.

Salary and terms of employment
The appointment will be based on the collective agreement with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. The allowance will be agreed upon with the relevant union.

The period of employment is 2 date is 1 March 2026 (or according to mutual agreement). The position is a full-time position.

You can read more aboutcareer paths at DTU here.

Further information
Further information may be obtained from Associate Professor Andrea Crovetto.

You can read more about DTU Nanolab at If you are applying from abroad you may find useful information on working in Denmark and at DTU atDTU Moving to Denmark.

Application procedure
Your complete online application must be submitted no later than 28 October 2025 (23:59 Danish time). Applications must be submitted as one PDF file containing all materials to be given consideration. To apply please open the link Apply now fill out the online application form and attach all your materials in English in one PDF file. The file must include:

• 1-pageapplication (cover letter)
• CV
• Academic Diplomas (MSc/PhD in English)
• List of publications

Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

All interested candidates irrespective of age gender disability race religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply. As DTU works with research in critical technology which is subject to special rules for security and export control open-source background checks may be conducted on qualified candidates for the position.

DTU Nanolab is Denmarks National Centre for Nanofabrication and Characterization located at the Technical University of Denmark in Lyngby 10 km north of Copenhagen. DTU Nanolabs state of the art facilities including the theoretical and practical expertise of our dedicated staff of around 120 researchers and technicians provide a unique opportunity for a successful project.

DTU Nanolab runs one of the most advanced university-owned open access nanofabrication cleanrooms as well as a wide variety of semiconductor characterization tools and a complementary suite of transmission and scanning electron microscopes. We conduct research in fabrication technologies and characterization methods including novel materials and technology-near applications.

Technology for people
DTU develops technology for people. With our international elite research and study programmes we are helping to create a better world and to solve the global challenges formulated in the UNs 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Hans Christian Ørsted founded DTU in 1829 with a clear mission to develop and create value using science and engineering to benefit society. That mission lives on today. DTU has 13500 students and 6000 employees. We work in an international atmosphere and have an inclusive evolving and informal working environment. DTU has campuses in all parts of Denmark and in Greenland and we collaborate with the best universities around the world.