Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Salary

The starting salary will be from £43,482 on Grade F, depending on qualifications and experience.

Contractual hours

36.5

Package

Generous holiday allowances, flexible working, pension scheme and relocation package (if applicable).

Job category/type

Research

Date posted

28/10/2025

Job reference

Q10817

Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy - Physics and Astronomy

Summary of the role

The above full-time (1.0FTE) post is available from early October 2026 until the end of September 2029, on a fixed term basis within the Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy.

This role offers the opportunity for hybrid working – some time on campus and some from home.

The post

The Faculty wishes to recruit a Postdoctoral Research Fellow to investigate the dynamics of gas and its interaction with dust in debris discs. This ERC funded post is available from October 2026. Earlier or later starting times are possible. The successful applicant will use hydrodynamical simulations to study how gas evolves in debris discs (e.g. what is its expected viscosity), how gas interacts with the dust to potentially produce some of the structures seen in JWST or ALMA data, and how these processes are affected by the presence of planets.

The post will include: setting up and running hydrodynamical simulations and comparing the results with observational constraints. The successful applicant will also have the opportunity to work with Masters students, summer students and potentially co-supervise PhD students.

About you

The successful applicant will be able to develop research objectives, projects and proposals; identify sources of research funding and contribute to the process of securing funds and make presentations at conferences and other events.

Applicants will possess a relevant PhD or equivalent qualification/experience in a related field of study. The successful applicant will be a nationally recognised authority in circumstellar disk science (e.g. debris discs, protoplanetary discs, etc) and possess sufficient specialist knowledge in the discipline to develop research programmes and methodologies. The successful applicant will also be able to work collaboratively, supervise the work of others and act as team leader as required. The applicant should be familiarised with the hydrodynamics of circumstellar discs, have the skills to run and adapt hydrodynamical simulations to be run in remote CPU/GPU clusters, and ideally have some experience producing synthetic observations of discs using radiative transfer software. Knowledge on dust-gas interactions would be also valuable.

Please ensure you read the Job Description and Person Specification for full details of this role.

What we can offer you

• Freedom (and the support) to pursue your intellectual interests and to work creatively across disciplines to produce internationally exciting research;
• Support teams that understand the University wide research and teaching goals and partner with our academics accordingly
• An Innovation, Impact and Business directorate that works closely with our academics providing specialist support for external engagement and development
• Our Exeter Academic initiative supporting high performing academics to achieve their potential and develop their career
• A multitude of staff benefits including sector leading benefits around maternity, adoption and shared parental leave (up to 26 weeks full pay), Paternity leave (up to 6 weeks full pay), and a Fertility Treatment Policy
• A beautiful campus set in the heart of stunning Devon

The University of Exeter

We are a member of the prestigious Russell Group of research-intensive universities and in the top 200 universities in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 and QS World University Ranking We combine world-class teaching with world-class research, achieving a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework Award 2023, underpinned by Gold ratings for Student Experience and Student Outcomes.

Our world-leading research impact has grown more than any other Russell Group university in recent years, and we are home to some of the world's most influential researchers, seeking to answer some of the most fundamental issues facing humankind today. More than 99 percent of our research is of international quality and 47 percent is world-leading (2021 Research Excellence Framework).

We encourage proactive engagement with industry, business and community partners to enhance the impact of research and education and improve the employability of our students. Read about our world leading research – Green Futures and how we are transforming education for a changing world. We are located in a beautiful part of the country and Exeter (a fast growing tech hub) is one of only a few UK cities to have been designated as a UNESCO Creative City

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Commitment

We are committed to ensuring reasonable adjustments are available for interviews and workplaces.

Whilst all applicants will be judged on merit alone, we particularly welcome applications from groups currently underrepresented within our working community.

With over 30,000 students and 7,000 staff from 150 different countries we offer a diverse and engaging environment where our diversity is celebrated and valued as a major strength. We are committed to creating an inclusive culture where all members of our community are supported to thrive; where diverse voices are heard through our engagement with evidence-based charter frameworks for gender (Athena SWAN and Project Juno for Physics), race equality (Race Equality Charter Mark), LGBTQ+ inclusion (Stonewall Diversity Champion) and as a Disability Confident employer.

We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and welcome applications from service people.

Further information

For further information please contact Sebastian Marino Estay, e-mail s.marino-

The closing date for completed applications is 5th of January 2026. Interviews are expected to take place on or near the end of January.