Position Description

The George R. Brown School of Engineering at Rice University, located in Houston, TX, seeks to fill multiple tenured and tenure-track at all ranks with an anticipated start date of July 1, 2024. The field of advanced materials is among the most critical fields of engineering. Rice University has a history of materials discovery and innovation.

We are seeking candidates whose research aligns with at least one of the following areas:

• Next-generation electronics/photonics, focused on developing materials to enable a new paradigm in microelectronics ranging from memory/logic to communications to sensors and beyond. This includes 1) Novel electronic materials such as quantum and 2D materials, organic and polymeric conductors and semiconductors, wide-bandgap materials, novel functional materials including dielectrics, piezoelectrics, pyroelectrics, ferroelectrics, magnets, multiferroics, magnetoelectrics, etc. to enable devices ranging from logic and memory (e.g., FeFET, NCFET, MESO, etc.), power electronics, beyond 5G communications, sensing (e.g., electric/magnetic fields, chemical, biological, etc.), interconnects, and beyond. 2) Materials synthesis, processing, fabrication, and prototyping including the production of novel forms of materials (e.g., freestanding films), integration of dissimilar materials, scaling science, advanced etching and lithography processes, and beyond. 3) Co-design of materials and devices/systems wherein researchers look both up and down the “ladder” nontraditional materials science to device designs and to systems and architectures and thus accelerate demonstrations and integration of new materials. 4) Materials characterization and testing including multi-modal approaches that explore the length-, time-, and energy-scale limits for materials.
• Energy Systems, focused on developing materials innovations to transform energy storage and conversion/harvesting. This includes novel energy-storage materials/technologies (e.g., flow batteries, capacitive-energy storage, thermal batteries), other mono- (e.g., Na) and multi-valent battery chemistries, solid-state battery materials, etc. 2) Energy-storage materials fundamentals including understanding material function in storage devices, lifetime, and failure, operando and multi-modal characterization of energy-storage systems, etc. 3) Energy-storage at extremes including materials to enable ultra-fast (pulsed energy) and ultra-long (>10 years) duration storage, energy storage in extreme environments (low and high temperatures, radiation hard, etc.), and beyond. 4) Energy-storage materials lifecycle, including recycling, resource extraction/alternative materials, electrochemical routes for cost effective extraction of resources, etc. 5) Novel materials for energy conversion/harvesting, including nontraditional approaches, to explore efficient approaches to convert energy from one form to another, harvest waste heat, fields, vibrations, etc., hybrid systems capable of harvesting energy of multiple forms in one system, etc.
• Environmental Stewardship, focused on developing materials innovations to assure responsible use of natural resources and long-term stewardship of our air, soil, and water. 1) Lifecycle aware materials innovations to transform how we do energy-efficient catalysis, capture, separations, etc. 2) Adsorption/nanosorbent materials including research on nanomaterials, MOFs, etc. 3) Separations materials such as (nano)membranes. 4) Catalysis including, but not limited to, oxidation of chemicals and CO2 reduction. 5) Capture and storage materials including those capable of working with carbon, water, and hydrogen. 6) Materials with selectivity for, stability against, and capable of monitoring/sensing all of the above.

Candidates may seek to investigate areas experimentally, theoretically, and/or computationally. We also encourage applicants who bring complementary expertise in artificial intelligence and machine learning and computational mathematics and operations research towards advanced materials.

The selected candidate will be expected to teach and develop undergraduate and graduate courses within their expertise; perform high-quality research in their specialized area and present findings from their research in peer-reviewed publications and conferences; establish a strong research program supported by extramural funding; be involved in service to the university and broader scientific community; and collaborate with faculty in diverse disciplines. The successful candidate will be required to have a strong commitment to teaching, advising, and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students from diverse backgrounds.

We seek greater representation of women, scholars of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and others who have historically been underrepresented in the School of Engineering; to attract international students from a wider range of countries and backgrounds; to accelerate progress in building a faculty and staff who are diverse in background and thought; and to support an inclusive environment that fosters interaction and understanding within our diverse community.

About Rice University

Rice University is a private, comprehensive research university located in the heart of Houston’s dynamic Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees across eight schools and has a student body of approximately 4,500 undergraduate and 4,000 graduate students. Rice consistently ranks among the top 20 national universities and the top 10 in undergraduate teaching (US News & World Report); its endowment ranks among the top 20 of US universities.

Departments within the George R. Brown School of Engineering

Bioengineering - https://bioengineering.rice.edu/

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering - https://chbe.rice.edu/

Civil and Environmental Engineering - https://cee.rice.edu/

Computational Applied Mathematics and Operations Research - https://cmor.rice.edu/

Computer Science - https://cs.rice.edu/

Electrical and Computer Engineering - https://www.ece.rice.edu/

Materials Science & NanoEngineering - https://msne.rice.edu/

Mechanical Engineering - https://mech.rice.edu/

Statistics - https://statistics.rice.edu/