
Postdoctoral Appointee - Experimental Solid Mechanics, Onsite
Albuquerque, NMTemporary / Full-timeSeen todaySeen in employer's feed today
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Job overview
Sandia National Laboratories seeks a Postdoctoral Appointee for its Experimental Impact Mechanics Laboratory. The appointee will conduct experimental mechanics research, particularly high-rate and impact testing, and collaborate with research engineers across several groups. The work includes experimental design and analysis, material characterization, model development, and technical publications and presentations. The position is temporary for up to one year, renewable at Sandia’s discretion for up to five additional years, and requires onsite work.
Skills & qualifications
Skills
Qualifications
Benefits
Full job description
Bidder Eligibility:
This postdoctoral position is a temporary position for up to one year, which may be renewed at Sandia's discretion up to five additional years. The PhD must have been conferred within five years prior to employment. Individuals in postdoctoral positions may bid on regular Sandia positions as internal candidates, and in some cases may be converted to regular career positions during their term if warranted by ongoing operational needs, continuing availability of funds, and satisfactory job performance.
Employees, excluding student interns, must remain in their current position for one year from their hire date before bidding on a new job. However, the hiring manager may obtain approval to consider a candidate before the one-year requirement is met via the review process. This approval must be secured prior to being interviewed for a posted position. The application of this requirement will not supersede collective bargaining agreements. Please refer to the collective bargaining labor agreements for eligibility requirements for represented bidders.
About Sandia:
Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:
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Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
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Extraordinary co-workers
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Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
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Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
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Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
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Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*
World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov
*These benefits vary by job classification.
What Your Job Will Be Like:
We are seeking a Postdoctoral Appointee for the Experimental Impact Mechanics Laboratory (EIML).
On any given day, you will be asked to:
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Perform experimental mechanics research with an emphasis on high-rate/impact testing of materials and structures, with, but not limited to, split Hopkinson bar (or Kolsky bar) techniques implemented with advanced diagnostic techniques
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Work with research engineers in EIML and collaborate with research engineers in other groups including Structural Mechanics Lab, Mechanical Shock Lab, and computational solid mechanics group
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Support research activities in the following areas: mechanical characterization of materials in normal and abnormal environments, rate-dependent material model development, dynamic failure and fracture, shock mitigation, and advanced experimental methods/diagnostic technique development
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Perform experimental design, execution, and analysis
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Produce technical reports, peer-reviewed journal articles, and conference presentations
Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant will be required to work onsite.
Qualifications We Require:
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PhD in Mechanical, Civil, Aerospace Engineering or a related field with an emphasis in solid mechanics
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Solid background and experience in experimental mechanics
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Experience working both independently and as part of a team and multi-task skills
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Good communication skills as evidenced by a history of publication of results in peer-reviewed journals and external presentations at appropriate scientific conferences
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Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE L clearance
Qualifications We Desire:
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Experience on mechanical testing, including MTS, Drop table, split Hopkinson bar, etc.
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Experience with advanced optical methods including digital image correlation (DIC), high-speed imaging, or other optical metrology
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Knowledge and experience with impact mechanics, engineering mechanics, or material sciences
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Commitment to operational safety, security and quality
About Our Team:
The Experimental Solid Mechanics Department 1528 is part of the Engineering Sciences Center at Sandia National Laboratories. Our center is the steward of engineering mechanics for Sandia and we are dedicated to solving our customer's most pressing and important national security problems. Our department specializes in experimental technologies related to structural mechanics and mechanics of materials. With our state of the art experimental technologies, technical expertise, and analytical capabilities in sister departments, we provide integrated customer solutions in the following areas: mechanical characterization of materials, components, and structures in normal or abnormal environments, development and application of state-of-the-art experimental and diagnostic techniques for scientific and mission impacts, and integration of analytical, computational, and experimental efforts for engineering solutions to national security problems. Our mission is to use research-development-application (R-D-A) spectrum for physical discovery, model development and validation, and qualification and acceptance for nuclear weapons, defense, energy, and other applications.
Posting Duration:
This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.
Security Clearance:
Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE L-level security clearance, which requires U.S. citizenship. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.
Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by the DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.
EEO:
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.
NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs:
If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.
If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.
Job ID: 699605
Job Family: 92
Regular/Temporary Position: T
Full/Part-Time Status: F
How this job compares
Set against the 4,869 open Researcher jobs on Olive Jobs, counted October 31, 2026.
- Pay
- This postingNot listed
- US median$100–150K/yr2,231 salary ranges
- US median$25–36/hr367 hourly ranges
- Openings
- Olive Jobs lists 49 open Researcher jobs in New Mexico and 4,869 across the US. 2% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
- Hiring the most in New Mexico
- Sandia National Laboratories (this employer)32 open
- Battelle Memorial Institute3 open
- Highmark Health2 open
- Experience
- Researcher postings that state a minimum ask for 4 years of experience at the median; the middle half ask for 2 to 5 years (1,605 postings).
- Education
- This posting asks for a doctorate or professional degree; 2,072 of the 4,869 open Researcher jobs (43%) ask for a doctorate or professional degree.
Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on October 31, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.
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