The Simons Collaboration on Black Holes and Strong Gravity (SimonsC-BHSG) directed out of the Department of Physics at the University of Illinois, is advertising two Postdoctoral Research Associates for work in fields relevant to the collaboration. The Simons Postdoctoral Research Associate in Strong Gravity and Black Holes will last a two-year term, with a possible extension for a third year. The positions will include funding for travel across the locations of the collaboration. The anticipated start date is August 2026, earlier start dates can be negotiated if appropriate. 

SimonsC-BHSG is a new, multidisciplinary and multinational collaboration exploring the non-linear and dynamical nature of strong gravity and black holes in and beyond Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity through gravitational observations. The collaboration brings together mathematicians, physicists, numerical experts, and data analysts to work on the following themes: 

• The mathematical study of singularities and the stability of rapidly rotating black holes in general relativity 
• The analytical and numerical study of the potential breakdown of effective field theory methods outside black holes 
• The analytical and numerical modeling of the dynamics of (and gravitational waves emitted in) binary black hole coalescence (including the inspiral, merger and ringdown phases) through perturbative (post-Newtonian and black hole perturbation theory) and non-perturbative (numerical) methods, 
• The connection of light-ring physics and ringdown physics in- and outside of general relativity in light of current and future gravitational observations
• The creation of new methods and tests to extract features about strong gravity predicted in Einstein’s theory and in beyond-Einstein theories from gravitational-wave observations 
• The amelioration of systematics induced by the mismodeling of gravitational waves, of astrophysical environments, or of noise artifacts in gravitational-wave inference
• The development of Bayesian data analysis techniques to carry out parameter estimation and model selection in non-stationary and non-Gaussian noise through traditional and AI-techniques

The collaboration’s major goal is to reveal deep insights about our cosmos at the intersection of strong gravity in general relativity, strong gravity beyond Einstein and gravitational observations. 

The Principal Investigators and Co-Principal Investigators participating in SimonsC-BHSG are Nicolás Yunes, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Emanuele Berti, Johns Hopkins University; Vitor Cardoso, Niels Bohr Institute; Katy Clough, Queen Mary, University of London; Neil Cornish, Montana State University; Mihalis Dafermos, Princeton University; Jonathan Gair, the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics, Albert Einstein Institute; Daniel Holz, the University of Chicago; Gary Horowitz, the University of California Santa Barbara; Luis Lehner, Perimeter Institute of Theoretical Physics in Canada; Alex Lupsasca, Vanderbilt University; and Matias Zaldarriaga, the Institute for Advanced Study. Applications made in response to this advertisement will be considered by the entire collaboration. 

Candidates for these positions should have, or receive, a Ph.D. in physics or mathematics prior to starting their appointment. Please provide a curriculum vitae, including a publication list and a 3-page statement of research interests and plans, and arrange to have three letters of recommendation submitted. Although based at the Department of Physics at the University of Illinois, the successful applicants will travel to collaborate with other members of the network, and should indicate collaborators and projects they would want to undertake with members of the network. We also encourage applicants to follow the structure of the AAS advice on the content of CVs and research statements given here: https://jobregister.aas.org/postdoc-application-guidelines. ;

The deadline for applications, through https://physics.illinois.edu/people/job-openings, is December 12, 2025. Late applications will be considered at the discretion of the search committee. Please contact Deanna Frye ddebord@illinois.edu if you have questions.

The University of Illinois offers a very competitive benefits portfolio, depending on the position. Click for a complete list of Employee Benefits.

The University of Illinois must also comply with applicable federal export control laws and regulations and, as such, reserves the right to employ restricted party screening procedures for applicants.

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