Postdoc on Stable Optical Circuits for Quantum Technology

Organisation/Company

University of Amsterdam (UvA)

Research Field

Physics » Optics
Physics » Quantum mechanics

Researcher Profile

Recognised Researcher (R2)

Application Deadline

31 May 2026 - 21:59 (UTC)

Country

Netherlands

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Not Applicable

Hours Per Week

38.0

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by a EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Do you have a background in optics, ultracold atoms or trapped ions? Do you want to have direct impact with your research? Do you enjoy technical projects involving optics, electronics, and software? Are you eager to join a startup and grow it to a successful company with real world impact? The Institute of Physics (IoP) is looking for an ambitious postdoc as part of the Ultracold Strontium Gases group (www.strontiumBEC.com ) and its spin-off OpticsFoundry B.V. (www.OpticsFoundry.com ).
Join us!
We are developing technology to robotically manufacture robust optical circuits for quantum technology and beyond. We provided the circuit boards for the AQuRA optical lattice clock and are offering such boards through our spin-off OpticsFoundry . Join us to push this technology to the next level in a collaboration with the Nonlinear Nanophotonics group of UTwente. You will expand our robotic manufacturing capabilities, allowing us to manufacture more versatile optical systems, including lasers, cavities, frequency references and more. If successful, you will be able to join OpticsFoundry and bring your achievements to the market.
What you will do
You will join a fast paced, tightly aligned team building, testing, and iterating cutting edge technology in a startup style environment. You will be expected to operate as an end-to-end problem solver, taking ownership of problems and driving them forward independently, while staying closely connected with the team. You will draw on both your own expertise and that of the team to rapidly identify problems, propose solutions, and prototype, test, and validate new ideas that expand our core technical capabilities. Your work will include designing and building robust optical circuits incorporating new types of elements. These include gain media, active positioning elements such as piezos and stepper motors, cavities, spectroscopy cells, photonic integrated circuits, and more. You will also develop robotic manufacturing techniques to place, align, and integrate these new components into scalable production workflows. You will build and benchmark real, usable optical systems such as laser lock circuits and laser sources, iterating quickly based on experimental results and feedback. In parallel, you will contribute to prototyping, validating, and debugging production processes, and work with users to ensure our solutions are practical, reliable, and genuinely delightful to use. If things go well, you will have the opportunity to join OpticsFoundry, ship advanced optical circuits to customers, and grow with the company as part of the core technical team.
What we ask of you
We are looking for someone who is excited about growing a small startup into a successful company and who loves to creatively solve technical puzzles. You also should have:

• a recent PhD in experimental atomic, molecular and optical physics;
• good skills with optics, and some experience with electronics and control software;
• great team working and learning skills, enabling rapid adaptation to evolving project needs;
• initiative and good time management skills;
• good communication skills in oral and written English.

What we offer you
We offer a temporary employment contract for 38 hours per week for a period of 12 months. The preferred starting date is as soon as possible. The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between € 3,546 to € 5,538 (scale 10). This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The UFO profile Researcher is applicable. A favourable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable.
You will work in this team
The Faculty of Science has a student body of around 8,000, as well as 1,800 members of staff working in education, research or support services. Researchers and students at the Faculty of Science are fascinated by every aspect of how the world works, be it elementary particles, the birth of the universe or the functioning of the brain.
The Institute of Physics (IoP) of the Faculty of Science combines the Van der Waals-Zeeman Institute (WZI), the Institute of Theoretical Physics (ITFA) and the Institute for High Energy Physics (IHEF) and is one of the large research institutes of the Faculty of Science at the University of Amsterdam. The Van der Waals - Zeeman Institute for Experimental Physics (IoP-WZI) is part of the IoP and home to three research clusters: Quantum Gases & Quantum Information (QG&QI), Quantum Materials (QMat), and Soft Matter (SM).
You will work in the Strontium Quantum Gases Group , part of the QG&QI cluster and headed by Prof. Dr. Florian Schreck. We exploit ultracold Sr gases for quantum sensing, the study of many-body physics and for quantum computing. We explore new ways to build sensors, such as superradiant clocks and collaborate with industry, startups and users to bring quantum technology to the market.
Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.
If you feel the profile fits you, and you are interested in the job, we look forward to receiving your application. You can apply online via the button below. We accept applications until the position has been filled.
If you have any questions or do you require additional information? Please contact:

• Prof. Dr. Florian Schreck: f.schreck@uva.nl

Applications should include the following information (all files besides your cv should be submitted in one single pdf file):

• a detailed CV including the start and end months (not just years) when referring to your education and work experience;
• a letter of motivation;
• a list of publications;
• the names and email addresses of two references who can provide letters of recommendation.

A knowledge security check can be part of the selection procedure (for details: national knowledge security guidelines ). Only complete applications received within the response period via the link below will be considered.

Website

https://www.academictransfer.com/en/jobs/357916/postdoc-on-stable-optical-circu…

Website for additional job details

https://www.academictransfer.com/357916/

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

UvA

Country

Netherlands

City

Amsterdam

Postal Code

1098XH

Street

Science Park 904

Geofield

City

Amsterdam

Website

http://www.uva.nl/

Street

Spui 21

Postal Code

1012 WX

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