Doctoral Position in Contact Mechanics of Architected Interfaces ETH Zürich in Switzerland

ETH Zürich is advertising a doctoral position in contact mechanics of architected interfaces within the Professorship of Solid Mechanics (SMEC) at the Institute for Building Materials. The project sits at the intersection of solid mechanics, interface mechanics, computational modeling, and multiscale contact mechanics, with a strong focus on understanding how local contact interactions in architected materials determine macroscopic interface response.

The research aims to develop physics-based and statistical or homogenized descriptions that connect cell-scale mechanics to the effective behavior of large architected interfaces. The work will involve numerical modeling of lattice materials, theoretical reasoning, and concepts from rough-surface and multiscale mechanics. Key quantities of interest include contact area, pressure distributions, interface stiffness, and load transmission, with the broader goal of deriving design principles for architected materials.

The professorship is part of a dynamic, international, and interdisciplinary environment at ETH Zurich. The research group works on a wide range of failure-mechanics topics, including particle systems, architected and topologically interlocked materials, fracture of soft materials, collagen fragility, earthquakes, and corrosion-driven degradation of concrete. This PhD position is especially well suited to applicants who enjoy computational and theoretical mechanics and want to contribute to fundamental understanding of mechanical behavior in advanced materials.

Applicants should have an MSc degree in mechanics, physics, engineering, materials science, computational science, or a related field. A background in solid mechanics, contact mechanics, computational mechanics, scientific computing, or multiscale modeling is particularly relevant. The successful candidate should be comfortable implementing scientific code, validating computational results, using Python and version control, and working collaboratively in a research team. Experience with architected materials, homogenization, statistical mechanics, or rough-surface contact mechanics is helpful but not required.

The position offers a stimulating and supportive research environment, with a flexible start date, possibly as soon as possible. Applications must be submitted online through the ETH Zurich portal. Required documents include a CV, academic transcript or list of completed courses, a short project statement relating your experience to the job description and literature, and contact details for two references. Questions about the position should be directed to Prof. David Kammer at [email protected].