permanent research position in Zagreb, Croatia

[L. Grisanti]

Dear Colleagues,

Within the next few months, we shall have an opening for a permanent
position of Research Associate (equiv. to Assistant Professor) in the
Condensed Matter and Statistical Physics (CMSP) group at the Rudjer
Boskovic Institute (RBI) in Zagreb, Croatia. This position is meant for a
scientist working in the theory and computation of condensed matter physics
and material science using density functional theory (DFT) or other
first-principles methods. We expect the potential candidate to have one to
several years of postdoc experience and valuable research record consistent
with it. Collaboration with experimental or technological groups is also
appreciated. There is a formal requirement of at least 9 papers in WoSCC,
at least 3 as the main author (Q1, Q2).

The Theoretical Physics Division is one of the most active division of RBI,
the leading research institution in Croatia, and the CMSP group has the
strongest tradition in acquiring local and international grants to support
its research effort. Thus, the candidate is expected to show a genuine
motivation in developing his research career in the group, adding valuable
potential to support the group efforts and to dedicate her/himself to
support the group effort toward excellence. RBI is a purely research
institution, so the appointee will not be distracted by teaching duties,
unless she/he wants to. Yet, RBI is next door to two additional
institutions carrying out physics research (the Institute for Physics and
the University), with potential collaborators and students to work with. In
this regard, there is plenty of opportunities to collaborate with
experimental groups, especially in condensed matter and material science,
where the number of scientists doing modeling is relatively low.

The cost of life in Croatia is significantly lower than in western Europe.
Thus, while the salary offered is in the top 20% of the national
distribution, it looks relatively low in comparison to a similar position
in western Europe (gross salary is around 2100 EUR). It should be remarked
that, in addition to being a purely research position, Croatia offers
efficient funding opportunities and it is uniquely positioned to be
competitive in European applications.

Due to the bureaucratic procedures of Croatia's academic employment, we are
scouting for potential candidates prior to the official openings to better
prepare the call. Potentially interested candidates are asked to contact
Ivor Loncaric (ivor.loncaric at irb.hr) and Luca Grisanti (luca.grisanti at irb.hr)
(cc:vinko.zlatic at irb.hr) and keep in mind that, from the time of the
application, to complete the employment process it could easily take approx
6-12 months. Thus, indicatively, we are looking for candidates available to
start in around 1 year.