Senior Scientist – Luminescence Thermometry - 1 Year FTC

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12 Sep 2025
12 Sep 2025
Teddington, United Kingdom
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Thermal & Radiometric Metrology
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Salary starting from £51,042 - dependant on experience
Fixed Term Contract

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Senior Scientist – Luminescence Thermometry - 1 Year FTC

About the Role
- NPL is the UK’s National Metrology Institute. Our role is to research, create and deliver the measurement infrastructure which underpins the UK’s prosperity and quality of life across many fields of industry. The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is seeking an experienced Senior Research Scientist to join our team in Teddington.
  
  Some of the day to day duties and responsibilities of the Senior Scientist will involve:
  
  Leading cutting-edge research, recognising aspects that could be commercially viable
  
  Representing NPL to promote our work and raise our profile
  
  Crafting winning bids, in line with NPL’s growth strategy
  
  Working inclusively and collaboratively to develop partnership opportunities
  
  In this post you will be part of a highly motivated team applying physics and engineering to solve challenging technical problems and will engage with external organisations to help grow our business.
  
  As a member of a world leading Temperature and Humidity measurement group you will be involved in a range of activities from government funded research to industry focused applications. Contemporary optical thermometry techniques, focusing on luminescence materials, have the potential to provide innovative solutions to immediate industrial challenges in a diverse range of sectors including advanced manufacturing, energy and the environment, and health care.
  
  Current research activities centre around traceable, robust thermometry in harsh environments:
  
  Design, construction and validation of novel single-point and imaging luminescence surface thermometry systems suitable for a wide range of industrial applications
  
  Development of a robust metrological foundation for luminescence thermometry including traceable calibration artifacts and extension of the lower and upper temperature measurement limits  
  
  Application of optical diagnostics to obtain low uncertainty temperature measurements of physical experiments, including contact probes (e.g., fibre-optic), surface probes (e.g., luminescence) and gas-phase probes (e.g., laser scattering) applications
  
  Commercialisation of laboratory luminescence thermometers for wider industrial uptake
  
  This research and development role will involve:
  
  Design, construction, and operation of experiments, using optical components, including the development of data acquisition systems and analysis software
  
  Reporting your work internally to your team and externally to your customers and other stakeholders, including peer review publications, conference presentations and invited lectures
  
  Actively seeking engagement with colleagues, customers, and other stakeholders to grow partnerships, business income and esteem indicators
  
  Technical leadership in project bidding and delivery, including grant proposal writing and reporting
About You
- To apply for this science research role, you will need to have significant and proven experience in a similar position. You are recognised as a specialist and leader in your field, an accolade supported by your technical background and a list of successful research projects. If your work has been published, all the better. Beyond that, we’re looking for someone who’ll thrive in an inclusive and collaborative environment like ours.
  
  Skills and required background/experience:
  
  This senior role requires a candidate with extensive relevant expertise who is recognised nationally and/or internationally as a specialist and leader in their field.
  
  A degree in physics or related engineering discipline (minimum upper second class) and ideally a PhD/EngD
  
  Ability to interact and network with collaborators and future customers from academia and industry
  
  Experience in managing and developing safe H&S practices for technical labs devoted to optical diagnostics
  
  In-depth understanding of the underlying physical principles of optical based measurements techniques (i.e., luminescence, pyrometry and spectroscopy) and the working principles of scientific instruments (i.e., scientific cameras, fast optical detectors, oscilloscopes and spectrometers)
  
  Ability to problem solve and propose appropriate technical solutions to challenging engineering and fundamental science problems
  
  Able to communicate clearly, both verbally and in written form, through conference talks, technical reports, peer-reviewed publications and proposal writing
  
  Experience in supporting and developing junior scientists/engineers
  
  Relevant technical experience to include:
  
  Design and implementation of optical diagnostics systems, incorporating UV/VIS laser and LED light source
  
  Experience in software programming, including data acquisition and data processing, such as LabVIEW, Python and MATLAB would be advantageous
  
  Expertise in basic numerical physics simulation software (COMSOL) and CAD software (e.g., SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor) would be desirable
  
  Previous experience in optical non-contact thermometry, particularly phosphor thermometry and pyrometry would be a distinct advantage
  
  If you think you have what it takes to join the Teddington-based NPL T&H team in a Senior Scientist's role, please apply here today.
  
  We actively recruit citizens of all backgrounds, but the nature of our work in specific departments means that nationality, residency and security requirements can be more tightly defined than others. To work at NPL, you will need to obtain BPSS security clearance. Some departments may require a higher level of security clearance.
  
  Please note: Applications will be reviewed, and interviews conducted throughout the duration of this advert therefore we may at any time bring the closing date forward. We encourage all interested applicants to apply as soon as possible.
About Us
- The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is a world-leading centre of excellence that provides cutting-edge measurement science, engineering and technology to underpin prosperity and quality of life in the UK. Find out more about what it is like working here - The measure of us - Overview
  
  NPL and DSIT have strong commitments to diversity and equality of opportunity, and welcome applications from candidates irrespective of their background, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or age, providing they meet the required criteria. Applications from women, disabled and black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates in particular are encouraged. All disabled candidates (as defined by the Equality Act 2010) who satisfy the minimum criteria for the role will be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme.
  
  At NPL, we believe our success is a result of the diversity and talent of our people. We strive to nurture and respect individuals to ensure everyone feels valued by treating everyone on the basis of their own individual merits and abilities regardless of their own or perceived identity, as part of our commitment to diversity & inclusion, we ensure we’re creating an environment where all our colleagues feel supported and welcome. More about this on our Diversity & Inclusion page.
  
  We are committed to the health and well-being of our employees. Flexible working and social activities are embedded in our culture to create a positive work-life balance, along with a broad range of rewards, benefits and recognition. Our values are at the heart of what we do, and they shape the way we interact, develop our people and celebrate success. To ensure everyone has an equal chance, we’re always willing to make reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss, please contact us.