Postdoctoral Researchers in Neural-Symbolic Methods for Scientific Computing
- Req. Number: IRC146181
- Organization : CAI-3 / Information Sciences
- City, State: Los Alamos, New Mexico
What You Will Do
The Information Sciences Group (CAI-3) in the Computing and Artificial Intelligence Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory is recruiting postdoctoral researchers to develop neural-symbolic methods that automatically construct, verify, and adapt numerical solvers for time-dependent partial differential equations. The research will couple generative program synthesis with numerical and symbolic verification to produce explicit operator-splitting schemes with checkable measures of stability, accuracy, and conservation.
The successful candidates will join a multidisciplinary team spanning numerical analysis, scientific machine learning, computational physics, dynamical systems, and large-scale scientific computing. The project will progress from smooth PDE systems to shock-dominated conservation laws and multiphysics problems, including compressible flow and magnetohydrodynamics. Methods will be tested on public scientific-machine-learning benchmarks and on computational kernels relevant to Los Alamos applications.
We are particularly interested in candidates with strong foundations in numerical methods for PDEs who want to work at the interface of scientific computing and machine learning. Depending on background, candidates may contribute to operator splitting, conservative and shock-capturing discretizations, generative models for symbolic programs, verifier-guided optimization, or formal certification of numerical algorithms. Experience in every area is not required; we value deep expertise in one area and a clear interest in learning across disciplines.
The postdoctoral researchers will:
What You Need
Minimum Job Requirements
Desired Qualifications:
Work Environment:
Work Location: The work location for this position is onsite and located in Los Alamos, NM. All work locations are at the discretion of management.
Note to Applicants:
Due to federal restrictions contained in the current National Defense Authorization Act, citizens of the People's Republic of China-including the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau-as well as citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), and the Russian Federation, who are not Lawful Permanent Residents ("green card" holders) are prohibited from accessing facilities that support the mission, functions, and operations of national security laboratories and nuclear weapons production facilities, which includes Los Alamos National Laboratory. Where You Will Work
Located in beautiful northern New Mexico, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security. Our generous benefits package includes:
Directive 206.2 - Employment with Triad requires a favorable decision by NNSA indicating employee is suitable under NNSA Supplemental Directive 206.2. Please note that this requirement applies only to citizens of the United States. Foreign nationals are subject to a similar requirement under DOE Order 142.3A.
No Clearance: Position does not require a security clearance. Selected candidates will be subject to drug testing and other pre-employment background checks.
New-Employment Drug Test: The Laboratory requires successful applicants to complete a new-employment drug test and maintains a substance abuse policy that includes random drug testing. Although New Mexico and other states have legalized the use of marijuana, use and possession of marijuana remain illegal under federal law. A positive drug test for marijuana will result in termination of employment, even if the use was pre-offer.
Internal Applicants: Regular appointment employees who have served the required period of continuous service in their current position are eligible to apply for posted jobs throughout the Laboratory. If an employee has not served the required period of continuous service, they may only apply for Laboratory jobs with the documented approval of their Division Leader. Please refer to Policy Policy P701 for applicant eligibility requirements.
Equal Opportunity: Los Alamos National Laboratory is an equal opportunity employer. All employment practices are based on qualification and merit, without regard to protected categories such as race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status or spousal affiliation, physical or mental disability, medical conditions, pregnancy, status as a protected veteran, genetic information, or citizenship within the limits imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations. The Laboratory is also committed to making our workplace accessible to individuals with disabilities and will provide reasonable accommodations, upon request, for individuals to participate in the application and hiring process. To request such an accommodation, please send an email to applyhelp@lanl.gov or call (505)-664-6947.Instructions on How to Activate/ Create a LANL Jobs Account:
Follow the instructions below if you have ever had an employee Z number, been a contractor, or received Los Alamos Lab insurance coverage to activate your account:
The Information Sciences Group (CAI-3) in the Computing and Artificial Intelligence Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory is recruiting postdoctoral researchers to develop neural-symbolic methods that automatically construct, verify, and adapt numerical solvers for time-dependent partial differential equations. The research will couple generative program synthesis with numerical and symbolic verification to produce explicit operator-splitting schemes with checkable measures of stability, accuracy, and conservation.
The successful candidates will join a multidisciplinary team spanning numerical analysis, scientific machine learning, computational physics, dynamical systems, and large-scale scientific computing. The project will progress from smooth PDE systems to shock-dominated conservation laws and multiphysics problems, including compressible flow and magnetohydrodynamics. Methods will be tested on public scientific-machine-learning benchmarks and on computational kernels relevant to Los Alamos applications.
We are particularly interested in candidates with strong foundations in numerical methods for PDEs who want to work at the interface of scientific computing and machine learning. Depending on background, candidates may contribute to operator splitting, conservative and shock-capturing discretizations, generative models for symbolic programs, verifier-guided optimization, or formal certification of numerical algorithms. Experience in every area is not required; we value deep expertise in one area and a clear interest in learning across disciplines.
The postdoctoral researchers will:
- develop and analyze global and spatially local operator-splitting algorithms for nonlinear PDEs, including shock-dominated and multiphysics systems;
- build generative proposers for symbolic solver programs using methods such as autoregressive models, discrete generative models, policy optimization, and tree search;
- develop numerical and symbolic verification tools for conservation laws, entropy consistency, stability, positivity, interface fluxes, and structural admissibility;
- implement reliable research software and run numerical experiments on large-scale computing platforms;
- design reproducible benchmarks that compare the proposed methods with classical numerical solvers, physics-informed models, neural operators, and related scientific-machine-learning baselines;
- publish original research, release research software when appropriate, and collaborate with scientists at Los Alamos and partner institutions.
What You Need
Minimum Job Requirements
- PhD in applied or computational mathematics, computer science, computational physics, engineering, or a related quantitative discipline, completed within the last 5 years or to be completed soon.
- Demonstrated research experience in numerical methods for PDEs, such as time integration, finite-volume, finite-difference, or finite-element methods, operator splitting, conservation laws, or computational fluid dynamics.
- Strong programming skills in one or more languages used for scientific computing, such as Python, C++, Julia, or Fortran.
- Experience implementing, testing, and evaluating numerical algorithms beyond coursework or classroom projects.
- Evidence of research accomplishment in numerical analysis, scientific computing, scientific machine learning, or a closely related field through publications, presentations, research software, or substantial projects.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a multidisciplinary scientific environment.
- Strong interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills.
Desired Qualifications:
- Experience with operator splitting, conservative or shock-capturing methods, adaptive or multirate time integration, magnetohydrodynamics, multiphysics, or multiscale simulation.
- Experience with scientific machine learning or generative modeling for structured or discrete objects, including reinforcement learning, Monte Carlo tree search, neural operators, or discrete-state generative models.
- Strong understanding of machine learning (ML) methods as evidenced through peer-reviewed publications, presentations, scientific software, or substantial research projects.
- Experience with formal methods or symbolic computation, such as satisfiability modulo theories, theorem proving, Lean, automated reasoning, or machine-checkable certificates for numerical algorithms.
- Basic Knowledge of numerical analysis, especially: aposteriori error analysis, adaptive control and conservation laws.
- Experience with high-performance computing, GPU or parallel programming, and collaborative software engineering practices, including testing, version control, and continuous integration.
Work Environment:
Work Location: The work location for this position is onsite and located in Los Alamos, NM. All work locations are at the discretion of management.
Note to Applicants:
- The appointment is for a duration of two years, with the possibility of a third-year extension based on performance evaluation.
- Candidates may be considered for a fellowship supported by the Center for Nonlinear Studies (CNLS). Outstanding candidates may be considered for a Director's Postdoc Fellowship or for the prestigious Richard P. Feynman, Darleane Christian Hoffman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, or Frederick Reines Distinguished Postdoc Fellowships.
- For more information about the Postdoc Program, please go to https://www.lanl.gov/engage/collaboration/postdoctoral-research
- Contact: Dr. Yen Ting Lin (yentingl@lanl.gov) or Dr. Nishant Panda (npanda@lanl.gov)
- Salary: Competitive salaries are based on the date the PhD degree requirements were completed, or the degree was awarded. Starting salary for a fresh PhD is currently $97,000. For more information, please refer to Postdoc Program website at https://www.lanl.gov/careers/career-options/postdoctoral-research/index.php
Due to federal restrictions contained in the current National Defense Authorization Act, citizens of the People's Republic of China-including the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau-as well as citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), and the Russian Federation, who are not Lawful Permanent Residents ("green card" holders) are prohibited from accessing facilities that support the mission, functions, and operations of national security laboratories and nuclear weapons production facilities, which includes Los Alamos National Laboratory. Where You Will Work
Located in beautiful northern New Mexico, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security. Our generous benefits package includes:
- PPO or High Deductible medical insurance with the same large nationwide network
- Dental and vision insurance
- Free basic life and disability insurance
- Paid childbirth and parental leave
- Award-winning 401(k) (6% matching plus 3.5% annually)
- Learning opportunities and tuition assistance
- Flexible schedules and time off (PTO and holidays)
- Onsite gyms and wellness programs
- Extensive relocation packages (outside a 50 mile radius)
Directive 206.2 - Employment with Triad requires a favorable decision by NNSA indicating employee is suitable under NNSA Supplemental Directive 206.2. Please note that this requirement applies only to citizens of the United States. Foreign nationals are subject to a similar requirement under DOE Order 142.3A.
No Clearance: Position does not require a security clearance. Selected candidates will be subject to drug testing and other pre-employment background checks.
New-Employment Drug Test: The Laboratory requires successful applicants to complete a new-employment drug test and maintains a substance abuse policy that includes random drug testing. Although New Mexico and other states have legalized the use of marijuana, use and possession of marijuana remain illegal under federal law. A positive drug test for marijuana will result in termination of employment, even if the use was pre-offer.
Internal Applicants: Regular appointment employees who have served the required period of continuous service in their current position are eligible to apply for posted jobs throughout the Laboratory. If an employee has not served the required period of continuous service, they may only apply for Laboratory jobs with the documented approval of their Division Leader. Please refer to Policy Policy P701 for applicant eligibility requirements.
Equal Opportunity: Los Alamos National Laboratory is an equal opportunity employer. All employment practices are based on qualification and merit, without regard to protected categories such as race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status or spousal affiliation, physical or mental disability, medical conditions, pregnancy, status as a protected veteran, genetic information, or citizenship within the limits imposed by federal, state, and local laws and regulations. The Laboratory is also committed to making our workplace accessible to individuals with disabilities and will provide reasonable accommodations, upon request, for individuals to participate in the application and hiring process. To request such an accommodation, please send an email to applyhelp@lanl.gov or call (505)-664-6947.Instructions on How to Activate/ Create a LANL Jobs Account:
Follow the instructions below if you have ever had an employee Z number, been a contractor, or received Los Alamos Lab insurance coverage to activate your account:
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