PhD Researcher in the field of Mechanical Engineering Porto

PhD Researcher in the field of Mechanical Engineering
Porto
Porto, Porto District, Portugal

Organisation/Company Instituto de Ciência e Inovação em Engenharia Mecânica e Engenharia Industrial Department People Management Research Field Engineering » Mechanical engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions Ph
D Positions Country Portugal Application Deadline 2 Jul 2025 - 23:59 (Europe/Lisbon) Type of Contract Other Type of Contract Extra Information
- term contract of uncertain duration Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 37, 5 Offer Starting Date 2 Jun 2025 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Reference Number LAETA-UIDB/50022/2020 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

INEGI - Instituto de Ciência e Inovação em Engenharia Mecânica e Engenharia Industrial is a Technology and Innovation Centre (CTI), focused on research and technological innovation, technology transfer, consultancy, and technical services aimed at the development of industry and the economy in general.

Context:
INEGI is opening a call for applications for the position of Ph
D Researcher in the field of Mechanical Engineering, under an exclusive dedication contract to carry out scientific research activities in the scientific area of Mechanical Engineering. The employment contract is a
- term contract of uncertain duration, under the scope of the LAETA project UIDB/50022/2020 – Multiannual Funding of R&D Units, funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), and pursuant to Decree-Law No. 57/2016, of August 29, as amended by Law No. 57/2017, of July 19, complementary legislation, and the Portuguese Labour Code, approved by Law No. 7/2009 of February 12, in its current version. The contract is based on the execution of a specific, precisely defined, and
- permanent service and must be funded, regardless of its source.

Main responsibilities include:

• Development of multiscale constitutive models based on crystal plasticity for accurate modelling of polycrystalline materials, incorporating phenomena such as
  - induced anisotropy and
  - state phase transformations (e. g. , martensitic). These models aim to capture local mechanical responses at the grain level and their influence on the macroscopic behaviour of the material.
• Formulation and implementation of advanced microstructure optimisation strategies based on composite Bayesian methods, tailored to the computational response of
  - linear finite element models. The methodology includes the use of Gaussian processes and efficient acquisition strategies (such as Expected Improvement and Knowledge Gradient), integrated with statistical inference techniques for the identification of constitutive parameters and inverse calibration.
• Execution of
  - fidelity micromechanical simulations on
  - performance computing (HPC) platforms, using
  - dimensional representative volume elements (RVEs) of polycrystals discretised with
  - compatible elements to analyse the evolution of plasticity and phase transformations under complex loading.
• Systematic and rigorous documentation of all developed methodologies, including detailed descriptions of the mathematical formulation of the models, numerical validation based on experimental benchmarks, and critical interpretation of the results. This documentation will be consolidated into detailed technical reports and scientific articles submitted to international journals in the field of computational mechanics and materials science.

Decree-Law no. 57/2016 of August 29, as amended by Law no. 57/2017 of July 19 and complementary legislation, and the Labour Code, approved by Law no. 7/2009 of February 12 in its current version.

2. The cessation of funding, termination of the project, or conclusion of the tasks that constitute the object of this recruitment procedure will determine the expiry of the employment contract, which shall take effect in accordance with Article 345(1) of the Labour Code. That is, “if the expiry of the term is foreseeable, the employer must notify the employee of the termination at least 7, 30, or 60 days in advance, depending on whether the contract has lasted up to six months, from six months to two years, or for a longer period. ”

4. Monthly remuneration level:

In accordance with Article 5(1) of Regulatory Decree no. 11-A/2017 of December 29, this call is opened at remuneration level 33 of the single remuneration table (TRU), which corresponds to a monthly salary of €2. 351, 53.

5. According to Article 13 of the RJEC, the Selection Committee shall be composed as follows:

6. Admission requirements:

6. 1 General requirements:

Nationals, foreigners, and stateless individuals may apply, provided they hold a doctoral degree or have their doctoral degree recognized under the terms of Decree-Law No. 66/2018 of August 16, and possess a professional curriculum that demonstrates a profile suited to the activities to be carried out.

The following conditions will be considered in the evaluation of candidates:

• Experience in the development of constitutive models with crystal plasticity, including
  - induced anisotropy and phase transformations in polycrystalline materials;
• Proficiency in the application of Bayesian optimization methods adapted to nonlinear numerical models, with a focus on inverse calibration and microstructure design;
• Experience in
  - fidelity micromechanical simulations on HPC, using
  - oriented RVEs;
• Experience in writing technical or scientific reports, or project documentation;
• Initiative, sense of responsibility, organization, autonomy, resilience, and strong interpersonal skills;
• Critical thinking and
  - oriented mindset;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to clearly explain technical concepts;
• Ability to present results to team members or mentors;
• Experience working in a team environment;
• Portuguese and English: Very good level (spoken and written).

7. By decision of the Selection Committee, candidates who do not meet the requirements set out in point 6 will not be admitted to the call. Candidates who fail to submit their application using the electronic form available at www.inegi. pt , by email to gestao. pessoas@inegi. up. pt , or by post will also be automatically excluded. Likewise, candidates who do not submit all the documents referred to in the same point, or who submit illegible, incorrectly completed, or invalid documents, will be excluded. The Selection Committee reserves the right to request any candidate, in case of doubt and for the purpose of admission to the competition, to provide supporting documents for the statements made.

The selection process is carried out through the evaluation of the scientific and curricular background of the candidates.

The evaluation focuses on the relevance, quality, and timeliness of the candidate’s scientific and curricular path:

• Scientific, technological, academic, and cultural or artistic production from the past four years, considered most relevant by the candidate;
• Applied or
  - based research activities carried out over the last five years, considered to have the greatest impact by the candidate;
• Outreach and knowledge dissemination activities carried out in the past four years, particularly in the context of promoting scientific culture and practices, considered most relevant by the candidate.

8. 1 The final classification of candidates is expressed on a scale from 0 to 20. The score is calculated by considering only activities relevant to the field of the competition for each item, according to the weighting described in point 9 of this call.

9. Evaluation criteria:

The evaluation criteria are outlined in this section, with particular emphasis given to the curriculum vitae and the candidate’s most relevant contributions in the past four years.

• Curricular assessment of the candidate's scientific and academic background (90%);
• Interview, if deemed appropriate by the jury, to be conducted with up to 3 of the
  - ranked candidates in the curricular assessment (10%);
• If applicable, the selected candidate must score at least 10 points (half of the total score) in the combined curricular assessment and interview;
• If no interview is held, the final classification will correspond to the score obtained in the curricular assessment;
• If none of the candidates demonstrate the appropriate profile for the execution of the proposed work plan, the Selection Committee reserves the right not to fill the position advertised in this call.

10. Evaluation of the candidates scientific and curricular background (0 to 20 points):

The evaluation of the scientific and curricular background, considering the profile suitable for the responsibilities related to the category of this position, focuses on the relevance, quality, and timeliness of the following aspects:

• Experience in multiscale modelling projects of polycrystalline materials, including crystal plasticity and phase transformations (0 to 5 points);
• Knowledge in Bayesian optimization methods and statistical inference applied to the calibration and design of microstructures using nonlinear numerical models (0 to 5 points);
• Prior experience in micromechanical simulations with RVEs and
  - performance computing (HPC) (0 to 4 points);
• Experience in writing technical and scientific reports in the fields of computational mechanics and materials science (0 to 2 points);
• Skills in scientific programming (Python, C++, Fortran, or equivalent), applied to materials simulation and numerical routine development (0 to 3 points);
• Motivation letter (0 to 1 point);
• Interview evaluation (0 to 20 points).

10. 1 If an interview is conducted, up to 3 candidates with the highest scores in the evaluation of scientific and curricular background will be invited. The jury will assess the following aspects:

• Knowledge of constitutive modelling of polycrystalline materials, including crystal plasticity and phase transformations (0 to 10 points);
• Motivation and understanding of the expected contribution within the scope of the research project (0 to 4 points);
• Interpersonal communication skills and clarity in the presentation of ideas (0 to 4 points);
• Ability to articulate different scientific domains (modelling, HPC, optimization) in an integrated manner (0 to 2 points).

11. Failure to attend the interview phase, if applicable, will be considered as withdrawal from the selection process, and the candidate will be excluded.

The jury may request additional supporting documentation from the candidate, whenever deemed necessary, to verify the accuracy of the statements relevant to the analysis and scoring of the application.

• Motivation letter, demonstrating alignment with the profile (max. 2500 characters, including spaces);
• Detailed Curriculum Vitae highlighting all higher academic qualifications, scientific production, professional background, and relevant experience;
• Other relevant academic or training certificates;
• Brief description of the most relevant scientific and innovation/dissemination activities from the past five years (maximum 1 page).

13. Expressions of interest must be submitted from May 2 to July 2, 2025, through the official INEGI website at www.inegi. pt under Join us | Open Positions by selecting Apply in CT UMEC 23/2025.

14. Failure to comply with these requirements will result in immediate exclusion from the selection process.

15. False statements made by candidates will be punished by law.

16. he results of the selection process will be communicated via email to the candidates. After being informed of the results, candidates have 10 working days to submit their comments.

17. Non-discrimination and equal access policy:

INEGI promotes a policy of
- discrimination and equal access. No candidate shall be privileged, benefited, prejudiced, or deprived of any rights or exempted from any duties based on, namely, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, economic situation, education, origin or social condition, genetic heritage, reduced work capacity, disability, chronic illness, nationality, ethnic origin or race, place of origin, language, religion, political or ideological beliefs, or trade union membership.