Postdoctoral Fellow in Cosmology or Radio Astronomy

The Astrophysics Research Group within the Department of Physics at Stellenbosch University invites applications for a postdoctoral fellowship, commencing in June 2025 or shortly thereafter. Established in 2023, the group comprises approximately 20 full-time researchers and is engaged in cutting-edge investigations across astrophysics and cosmology. Key research areas include the epoch of reionization, cosmic microwave background (CMB) studies, galaxy surveys and large-scale structures, neutron stars and black holes, and the indirect detection of dark matter.

The group plays a central role in South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope, the MeerKAT Extended Array, and the Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA). It also maintains formal collaborations with international projects such as the LSST (Vera C. Rubin Observatory), the SKA Science Working Groups, FAST, and the CMB Stage-4 survey in the United States. Additionally, the group has established a strategic partnership with the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute at Groningen University, with seven jointly supervised PhD students starting in 2025. Further collaborations extend to Stellenbosch University’s Faculty of Engineering and the School for Data Science, leveraging expertise in radio antenna technology and advanced big-data analytics. More details are available at: https://physics.sun.ac.za/astro/.

Given the group's involvement in these experiments, preference for this fellowship will be given to candidates with experience in any of the following areas: low-frequency radio data analysis, pulsar-timing arrays, CMB data analysis, galaxy surveys, or weak gravitational lensing.