POST DOCTORAL POSITION AVAILABLE, University of Pau, IPREM - CNRS

POST DOCTORAL POSITION AVAILABLE

«Lithium-Sulfur batteries for electric vehicless»

Chemistry of materials / Surfaces and interfaces / Electrochemistry / Lithium batteries

The development of electric vehicles with an extended range requires batteries with a very high specific energy density. Lithium-ion batteries (the common power sources of portable electronic devices) are one of the possible solutions. However lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are an alternative with higher specific energy density.

Materials for positive electrodes in Li-S batteries are mesoporous structures impregnated with elemental S8. The chemistry of such systems is rather complex: Li2Sn species are formed upon discharge and dissolve into the organic electrolyte. Some of them are not soluble. Side reactions take place, which are detrimental for battery performance. In order to improve these systems and address the specifications (energy, power, safety) required for vehicle applications, it is necessary to understand and solve the problems, especially the reactivity at electrode/electrolyte interfaces.

The post-doc position belongs to a large research program (HELIS) funded by the European Union (H2020 program) involving 7 European countries, including research laboratories and industrial partners of the chemistry, automobile and energy fields.

The applicant will work at IPREM research institute (UMR 5254 – CNRS / University of Pau), located in Pau, France, whose areas of expertise are materials surface & interface science and electrochemical storage of energy. An important part of the work will consist in studying electrode materials and electrode/electrolyte interfaces, and their relations with electrochemical performances of the batteries. Specific tools for characterisation of surfaces will be used (XPS, ToF-SIMS, AFM, Auger). The applicant should have recognized skills in chemistry and solid state electrochemistry, physical chemistry of surfaces and interfaces.

Publication related to the topic: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.chemmater.5b02906 A great interactivity between partners of the project is an important part of the job, and periodic travels for meetings in Europe are planned. A great ability to write reports and summaries, to write and speak in English is required.

Duration of the contract: 36 months
Expected start: March-April 2016
Gross salary: about 2500 euros/month (about 2000 euros after taxes)

Please send by e-mail a detailed CV (including a short description of previous research works, publications) with references and a letter explaining your motivation.

Contact : Pr. Rémi Dedryvère
University of Pau, IPREM - CNRS
Hélioparc, 2 av. Pierre Angot, 64053 Pau cedex 9
France
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