Basic Energy Sciences Program Manger

The purpose of this notice is to inform you of a job opportunity for a Physical Scientist GS-1301-15 position in the Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES), Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences (CSGB) Division, Germantown, MD. The selected program manager will manage the portfolio of fundamental ultrafast chemical sciences research in the Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Sciences (AMOS) Program. The recruitment will use the Open Continuous Direct Hire Announcement FY24-OCDH-1301-12138484-DH which is posted on USAJOBS: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/751211200.

This announcement will be used to collect applications from candidates for this permanent position. You must submit your application, including a resume and any other required documents identified in the announcement, through USAJOBS to be considered for this position. Your application should describe how your experience demonstrates that you meet the requirements for a GS-15 position and should show that you possess the knowledge and abilities in atomic, molecular, and optical sciences required to successfully perform the duties of this position. When applying, please indicate your interest in positions in Germantown, Maryland, and you are strongly encouraged to submit an optional cover letter indicating your interest in the BES AMOS Program Manager position. Management will request a list of applicants who submitted the required materials between February 1 and  February 15, 2024.

Anyone applying to this position needs to be aware that, if selected, you will be placed on a new permanent appointment in the civil service. A DOE career status employee selected for this position may be required to serve a new one (1) year probationary period, pursuant to 5 CFR 315.802.

For more information, please contact Gail McLean, Office of Basic Energy Sciences at Gail.Mclean@science.doe.gov or (301) 903-7807.

Overview

The program manager will manage the Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Sciences (AMOS) Program in the CSGB Division of BES. The AMOS Program currently focuses on fundamental, hypothesis-driven research in ultrafast chemical sciences. The program manager will determine scientific focus and direction of the research portfolio, prepare calls for proposals, organize independent peer reviews, recommend funding allocations, organize Principal Investigator meetings, serve as a liaison on committees, and assess scientific progress of the research portfolio. The program manager conceives, justifies, plans, initiates, manages, and coordinates all aspects of the program that includes a diverse range of fundamental experimental and theoretical research in AMOS.

The AMOS program supports basic experimental and theoretical research aimed at understanding the structural and dynamical properties of atomic and molecular systems. The research targets fundamental interactions of photons and electrons with atomic and molecular systems to characterize and control their behavior. The program aims to develop accurate quantum mechanical descriptions of ultrafast dynamical processes, such as charge migration and transfer, chemical bond breaking and forming, and interactions in strong fields, where electron-electron and electron-nuclei correlations are important. The program emphasizes ultrafast, strong-field, short-wavelength science, and studies of correlated dynamics in molecules. Examples include ultrafast x-ray science at x-ray free electron laser facilities and the use of high-harmonic generation or its variants for probing ultrafast molecular dynamics.

Other information

More information about BES can be found at: https://science.osti.gov/bes.

A description of the BES AMOS Program can be found at:

https://science.osti.gov/bes/csgb/Research-Areas/Atomic-Molecular-and-Optical-Science.

Details of the current Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Sciences research portfolio may be found in the abstracts of the most recent principal investigators’ meeting at https://science.osti.gov/bes/csgb/Principal-Investigators-Meetings.