KTH Royal Institute of Technology, School of Engineering Sciences in Chemistry, Biotechnology and Health

Job description

Electrodeposition is a versatile and accessible method for preparing metallic nanostructures and alloys with tunable morphology. Moreover, pulse-mediated electrodeposition has been shown to produce high-index facet shaped particles. High-index facets are surfaces with steps and kinks, which serve as active sites for several electrocatalytic processes.

This postdoctoral position will investigate pulse-mediated electrodeposition of metal particles using deep eutectic and organic solvents, ultimately aiming to induce kinked high-index surfaces. Deep eutectic solvents are typically biocompatible and biodegradable solvents formed by a hydrogen bond donor and a hydrogen bond acceptor. This characteristic confers them a highly tunable chemical structure that influences nucleation and growth mechanisms. The project will explore whether different types of solvents can induce distinct particle shapes during pulsed electrodeposition.

In addition, the candidate will investigate electrochemical characterisation methods to probe the prepared surfaces and identify sites of different geometries. The deposited particles will be evaluated in electrocatalytic reactions, with a primary focus on the conversion of biomass-derived feedstocks into value-added chemicals.

For further details of our approach look at: KTH | Paula Sebastián Pascual and https://doi.org/10.26434/chemrxiv-2026-m2khp

Qualifications

Requirements

  • A doctoral degree or an equivalent foreign degree in Chemistry or Physics with a background in electrocatalysis. This eligibility requirement must be met no later than the time the employment decision is made.
  • Demonstrated experimental experience in electrochemistry and electrocatalysis.

Personal skills

  • As a person, you are cooperative, communicative, attentive, self-motivated and open-minded.
  • As you will be co-supervising students, ideally, you have previous teaching experience and demonstrate empathy and patience with others.
  • You have awareness of diversity and equal opportunity issues.
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English, since this is required in the daily work.

Preferred qualifications

  • A doctoral degree or an equivalent foreign degree, obtained within the last three years prior to the application deadline.
  • Experimental experience in electrochemical surface characterisation of well-defined surfaces such as shaped particles or single-crystal electrodes.
  • Experimental experience in the preparation of particles using electrodeposition methods (e.g., pulsed electrodeposition).
  • Experience in the use of electron microscopy and diffraction-based methods for characterising surface morphologies and orientations is considered.

Great emphasis will be placed on personal skills.

Join us at KTH

KTH shapes the future through education, research and innovation. As a leading international technical university, we play an active role in advancing the transition towards a sustainable society. At KTH, you have the opportunity to grow and develop in a creative and dynamic environment, with good working conditions and attractive benefits. Equality, diversity and equal opportunities are essential to quality and form an integral part of KTH’s core values as a university and public authority.

Learn more about our benefits and what it's like to work and grow at KTH.

Trade union representatives

Contact information to trade union representatives.

To apply for the position

Log into KTH's recruitment system to apply for this position. You are responsible for ensuring that your application is complete according to the instructions in the ad.

The application must include:

  • CV including relevant professional experience and knowledge.
  • Copy of diplomas and grades from your previous university studies. In case you plan to defend your PhD thesis after this call, include the information on the defense date. Translations into English or Swedish if the original documents have not been issued in any of these languages.
  • Brief account of why you want to conduct research, your academic interests and how they relate to your previous studies and future goals. Maximally two pages long.
  • Attach at least two publications and describe how your work relates to the project of this call.

Your complete application must be received at KTH no later than the last day of application, midnight CET/CEST (Central European Time/Central European Summer Time).

About the employment

The position offered is for, at the most, two years.

A position as a postdoctoral fellow is a time-limited qualified appointment focusing mainly on research, intended as a first career step after a dissertation.

Other information

For information about processing of personal data in the recruitment process.

It may be the case that a position at KTH is classified as a security-sensitive role in accordance with the Protective Security Act (2018:585). If this applies to the specific position, a security clearance will be conducted for the applicant in accordance with the same law with the applicant's consent. In such cases, a prerequisite for employment is that the applicant is approved following the security clearance.

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Disclaimer: In case of discrepancy between the Swedish original and the English translation of the job announcement, the Swedish version takes precedence.

Type of employment Temporary position
Contract type Full time
First day of employment According to agreement
Salary Monthly salary
Number of positions 1
Full-time equivalent 100%
City Stockholm
County Stockholms län
Country Sweden
Reference number PA-2026-1228
Contact
  • Paula Sebastián Pascual, paulasp@kth.se
Published 08.Apr.2026
Last application date 06.May.2026

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