Responsibilities
As a PhD student, you will investigate mechanisms of (electro)catalytic reactions. The aim of this project is to detect and characterize reaction intermediates and to study reaction kinetics to understand the reaction and contribute to the improvement of catalysis. To this end, you will learn all mass spectrometry and electrochemistry techniques in the Roithova group. You will also contribute to developing new techniques, as needed for the project. The project will run within the framework of the collaboration between the Big Chemistry consortium (https://bigchemistry.nl) and the Max Planck Society.
For relevant literature, see: Acc. Chem. Res. 2016, 49, 223; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2024, 146, 15619, and 2024, 146, 5480.
Paper from a collaborating group: J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2025, 147, 19438.

Work environment
The research project will be carried out in the group of Prof. Roithova in the Institute for Molecules and Materials at Radboud University Nijmegen. The Roithova group performs research on the boundarues of organic, inorganic and physical chemistry. We focus on developing new approaches to study chemical reactions using mass spectrometry as a detection technique, but use also other techniques when it is suitable. The group is housed in the Huygens building with access to chemical laboratories, all standard analytical equipment, and a computer cluster for theoretical calculations. In addition, the group is equipped with a cryotrapping ion spectroscopy experiment, IR and UV-vis OPOs and several mass spectrometers dedicated for mechanistic research.

Your background
·       Master’s degree in chemistry
·       Deep knowledge in at least two fields in chemistry (organic, inorganic, physical          chemistry, or analytical chemistry)   
·       Good communication skills in English, both in writing and verbally
 
What we have to offer
·       employment: 1.0 FTE with standard conditions and benefits of Dutch universities
·       you will be appointed for an initial period of 18 months, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5 years; 
·       You will be able to make use of our Dual Career Service, where our Dual Career Officer will assist with family-related support, such as child care, and help your partner prepare for the local labour market and find an occupation.

Other Information
Radboud University is an equal opportunity employer, committed to building a culturally diverse intellectual community, and as such encourages applications from women and minorities.
 
Are you interested? 
You should send your application to [email protected]. Your application must include (and be limited to) the following attachment(s): 

• Motivation letter including a copy/transcript of grades from your undergraduate studies 
• CV including the names of two references 
• 2-page proposal, how you could study reaction published in the paper below in the Roithova laboratory. 
  Paper: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/jacs.3c03340