"Synthesis & characterizations of new generations of organic electrolytes for electrochemical energy storage "
PhD position (36 months) in Organic Chemistry
@ CEA-Grenoble, France
Employer: CEA-Grenoble
Workplace: CEA-Liten and CEA-INAC, MINATEC Campus, Grenoble, France
Expected starting date: Oct. 1, 2015
Salary: € 1,800 up to € 2,200 gross salary per month depending on previous experience
Skills/Area: organic or macromolecular chemistry, electrochemical energy storage, electrolyte, lithium-ion battery
Starting in October 2015, a 36 months PhD position funded by the French Atomic and Alternative Energies Commission
(CEA) and the French General Directorate for Armament (DGA) is immediately available in the CEA-Liten (Laboratory for
Innovation in New Energy Technologies and Nanomaterials) and SPrAM (UMR5819-Structures and Properties of
Molecular Architectures laboratory (CEA/CNRS/UGA)) labs of CEA-Grenoble (Rhone-Alpes region, France).
The CEA-Liten is a preeminent European Research Center in the areas of energy. In order to sustain its research program
on lithium-ion battery, CEA-Liten and DGA invite applications for a 36-month PhD position dealing with the synthesis
and characterizations of new generations of organic electrolytes for electrochemical energy storage. Under the
co-supervision of Dr. Lionel Picard and Dr. Patrice Rannou, the PhD candidate will benefit from an international research
environment, interdisciplinary training and state of the art facilities (chemistry lab, Lithium-compatible “dry lab”,
MINATEC’s advanced characterization platforms). Excellent young scientists strongly motivated by working at the
forefront of research and technology are encouraged to apply.
PhD project summary: Advanced batteries are key technological solutions to address climate and environmental
challenges when cheap and/or sustainable energy supply are required. The development of efficient, safe and robust
electrochemical storage devices appears today essential to mitigate the present world-wide dependence from fossil
resources. Within existing technologies, Li-ion batteries are therefore foreseen as power sources of choice for the 21st
century energy economy. While already successfully implemented for nomad and on board applications, innovation
breakthroughs to enhance their energy density and long-term reliability are now critical for mastering the spatiotemporal
variability of the energetic mix of conventional (but limited) fossil resources with alternative (but renewable) energy. This
holds true on the long run for an ever sober consumption of energy. Strategically and spatially localized at the heart of
an electrochemical cell, the electrolytic system is an ideal target to develop a new generation of high performance
Lithium-ion batteries. The PhD research aims at developing a new electrolyte technology for encoding safety and
efficient ionic transport into next generation high performance Lithium-ion batteries going well beyond the mainstream approaches based on Li salts-carbonates mixtures, Solid Polymer or Gel Polymer Electrolytes (SPEs/GPEs), or
ceramic and inorganic glasses electrolytes. The new electrolytes will be integrated into battery prototypes and fully
tested (multi-scale (in situ and in operando) structure/ionic transport correlations) and benchmarked with respect to
existing technologies through collaboration with specialized teams of CEA-Liten and CEA-INAC.
Eligible candidate: The applicant (an organic chemist) should hold a M.Sc. in organic or polymer chemistry related to
the research topic described above (i.e. synthesis of functional (macro)molecular materials) and acquired in first class
universities or research institutes. Hands on organic and/or polymer synthesis, purification processes, (physico)chemical
characterizations (1H/13C NMR, FTIR, El. Analysis, MS, SEC etc… ) are a must. The working language is English and
knowledge of the French language is not necessary. The ideal candidate should also demonstrate good experimental
skills, team working abilities, and good communication and writing skills to interact with teams of CEA-Liten and CEAINAC and for the dissemination (patent, papers and communications in (inter)national conference)) of results of his/her
works.
Application procedure & additional details: Application should be directly addressed to both [email protected]
and [email protected] via E-mail. Note that an eligible application will mandatorily consists in a set of two
documents: an extended curriculum vitae with a statement of the applicant’s research interests and relevant previous
experiences as well as recommendations letters. The position will remain open until filled by the appropriate candidate.
Qualified applicants will be submitted to a competitive selection process from June 1, 2015 onwards.
Contacts
Dr. Lionel Picard
Dr. Patrice Rannou
E-mail: [email protected]
E-mail: [email protected]
CEA-Grenoble, Laboratory for Innovation in New
CEA-Grenoble, Institute for Nanoscience and Cryogenics
Energy Technologies and Nanomaterials (LITEN)
(INAC), UMR5819-SPrAM (CEA/CNR/UGA) lab.