Description

External Retirement Plan TRS or ORP Employment Type Employee Benefits Eligibility Benefits Eligible Full/Part time Full Time Work Schedule Additional Schedule Information
M-F; 8am-5pm; Evening or weekend work may be required
Advertised Salary Commensurate with experience Posting Date 01/08/2026 Open until filled Yes Closing Date Proposed Starting Date 04/01/2026 Special Instructions to Applicants Location of Vacancy Athens Area EEO Policy Statement
The University of Georgia is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or veteran status or other protected status. Persons needing accommodations or assistance with the accessibility of materials related to this search are encouraged to contact Central HR (hrweb@uga.edu).
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Position Information

Classification Title Res Engineer-Photonics II FLSA Exempt FTE 1.00 Minimum Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent and 2 years of professional experience
Preferred Qualifications Position Summary
This position is an advanced professional work position in the fields of structural biology and X-ray optical engineering.

Work involves research, development, planning, organizing, evaluating and directing programs and projects in a Synchrotron Research Facility.

An employee allocated to this class of work research, develops, and evaluates design criteria, methods, processes, instrumentation, computer programs and systems, and related equipment for beamline operations at a Synchrotron Facility. This position may assist with supervising the work of other subordinate beamline personnel.

Methods of fulfilling responsibilities are usually at the discretion of the employee. Work is carried out under the general direction of an administrative superior and is reviewed through observation of the results.

The SER-CAT beamline engineer position is a critical component of the highly skilled staffing matrix of the SER-CAT operations team that is required to maintain and improve SER-CAT as a state-of-art Research Resource.

The SER-CAT beamline engineer will be required to work as part of the operations development team with the SER-CAT operation manager and controls scientists. The applicant will work independently on highly complex design and integration tasks in all areas of the defined beamline systems and be able to supervise the SER-CAT Research Engineer and support staff in the regular maintenance, trouble shooting and repair of components in all defined beamline systems.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and/or Competencies
Strong working knowledge of the following:

• Synchrotron beamline components such as monochromators and sample goniometers
• Common drawing package such as Auto-CAD or similar
• Cryogenic systems.
• Vacuum technology
• Servo and stepper motors and their requisite amplifiers and drivers
• Control hardware for motion control such as delta-tau and galil motion controllers
• Experience with experiment automation.
• Experience with beamline operations

Physical Demands

• Normal working conditions in an office and laboratory environment.
• Ability to lift the weight of a shipping Dewar (~40-50 lbs.) and other shipments items of similar poundage.

Is driving a responsibility of this position? No Is this a Position of Trust? Yes Does this position have operation, access, or control of financial resources? No Does this position require a P-Card? No Is having a P-Card an essential function of this position? No Does this position have direct interaction or care of children under the age of 18 or direct patient care? No Does this position have Security Access (e.g., public safety, IT security, personnel records, patient records, or access to chemicals and medications) Yes Credit and P-Card policy
Be advised a credit check will be required for all positions with financial responsibilities. For additional information about the credit check criteria, visit the UGA Credit Background Check website.
Background Investigation Policy
Offers of employment are contingent upon completion of a background investigation including, a criminal background check demonstrating your eligibility for employment with the University of Georgia; confirmation of the credentials and employment history reflected in your application materials (including reference checks) as they relate to the job-based requirements of the position applied for; and, if applicable, a satisfactory credit check. You may also be subject to a pre-employment drug test for positions with high-risk responsibilities, if applicable. Please visit the UGA Background Check website.

Duties/Responsibilities

Duties/Responsibilities
Beamline Automation

• Work as part of the SER-CAT operations development team to research and propose upgrades to the various beamline automated systems.
• Provide engineering support for the installation and commissioning of new beamline automation equipment which includes (but not limited to) sample mounting automation and data collection/processing automation.
• Oversee the procurement of new beamline automation equipment and supplies.
• Supervise/Participate in the maintenance, trouble shooting, and repair of the beamline automation hardware, which includes (but not limited to) Sample changers, Sample diffractometers and detector supports.

Percentage of time 50 Duties/Responsibilities
Motor Drive Systems

• Work as part of the SER-CAT operations development team to research and propose upgrades to the various beamline motion control systems.
• Supervise/Participate in the maintenance, trouble shooting, and repair of the beamline motion control hardware, which includes (but not limited to) delta-tau motion controllers, various servo and stepper motors as well their associated current amplifiers and drivers.
• Oversee the procurement of new motion control equipment and supplies.

Percentage of time 20 Duties/Responsibilities
Programming control systems such as Galil, PMAC and ACS

• Work as part of the SER-CAT operations development team to research and propose upgrades to the various beamline motion control systems.
• Supervise/Participate in the maintenance, trouble shooting and repair of the beamline control systems which include (but not limited to) Beamline equipment protection systems, which are comprised of various measurement devices from all of the beamline systems which are controlled by Allen Bradley PLCs.

Percentage of time 15 Duties/Responsibilities
User interface design/implementation

• The candidate will use CAD/CAM systems for the design/implementation of beamline components and design/fabrication, and installation and other experimental components.
• Supervise/Participate in the documentation of new beamline capabilities.
• Prepares and presents technical reports, research articles and poster presentation to members, supervisors and the research community.

Percentage of time 15

Contact Information

Recruitment Contact

Contact Details
For questions concerning this position or recruitment progression, please refer to the Recruitment Contact listed below.
Recruitment Contact Name Dr. John Chrzas Recruitment Contact Email chrzas@uga.edu Recruitment Contact Phone

Posting Specific Questions

Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*).

Applicant Documents

Required Documents

1. Resume/CV
2. Cover Letter

Optional Documents