Postdoctoral Positions in Stellar Physics

The University of Graz invites applications for postdoctoral positions in stellar physics. Successful candidates will join the Stellar Physics group led by Prof. Alexander Shapiro and work within the REVEAL (REVEALing Signatures of Habitable Worlds Hidden by Stellar Activity) project, funded by the ERC Synergy Grant. The current search is being conducted in two directions: observations of cool stars and modeling variability of cool stars.

Observations of cool stars.  We are looking for candidates with a demonstrated ability to compare optical and/or infrared spectroscopic observations of cool stars with model spectra. The person must be: 

• Familiar with archives containing spectroscopic observations and the data products in those archives,
• Comfortable developing python code in a configured environment and interacting with Github.

Ideally, the person will have: 

• Experience observing with at least one optical or infrared spectrograph,
• Experience running at least one spectroscopic data reduction pipeline. 

Additional experience that is relevant includes:

• Knowledge of spectral line formation and important spectral features in cool stars,
• Submitting proposals to obtain spectroscopic observations of cool stars

Modeling variability of cool stars. Here we are looking for a broad class of candidates interested in modeling stellar variability with applications to detection and characterizations of exoplanets and their atmospheres. The candidates are expected to have a solid background and publication record in theory of stellar or exoplanetary atmospheres. Experience in MHD simulations and/or numerical radiative transfer modeling is of particular advantage.

The positions are available as early as 1 February 2025 or later and are offered for an initial period of two years with a possible prolongation depending on performance.