Post Doctoral RA – Mass Spectrometry

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory • Richland, WA

1d • $69,000 - $119,100 • Onsite

About The Position

At PNNL, our core capabilities are divided among major departments that we refer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research or other function, with its own leadership team and dedicated budget.
Our Science & Technology directorates include National Security, Earth and Biological Sciences, Physical and Computational Sciences, and Energy and Environment. In addition, we have an Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus.
The Earth and Biological Sciences Directorate (EBSD) leads critical research in four areas: Atmospheric, Climate & Earth Sciences, Biological Sciences, Environmental Molecular Sciences, and Global Change. Our vision is to develop a predictive understanding of biological and Earth systems in transition. We aim to understand energy and material flows within the integrated Earth system; to understand, predict, and control the response of biosystems to environmental and/or genomic changes; and to Model the Earth system from the subsurface to the atmosphere.
The Environmental Molecular Sciences Division is comprised of 18 interdisciplinary research teams focused on deciphering molecular-level interactions driving biological and environmental processes across temporal and spatial scales. Through computational analysis and modeling, these findings contribute to predictive understanding of how systems respond to environmental perturbations thus enabling solutions to the nation’s energy, environmental, and human health challenges. The division also manages the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus that accelerates the research of scientists around the world by providing access to world-class expertise, instrumentation, and computational resources.
The Functional and Systems Biology group within the Environmental Molecular Sciences Division at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is seeking a postdoctoral research associate to support the development, operation, and application of Fourier transform mass spectrometry (FTMS) platforms, including Orbitrap and FTICR-based systems. This work is conducted within the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL), a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility, and will involve close interaction with internal researchers and external users.
The successful candidate will work as part of a multidisciplinary team to design and execute experiments leveraging high-resolution mass spectrometry for biological and environmental systems, including plant, microbial, soil, aqueous, and aerosol samples. Research efforts will contribute to applications in biotechnology, the bioeconomy, and the characterization of systems relevant to critical materials and mineral cycling, while maintaining a primary focus on advancing FTMS capabilities and methodologies.
Responsibilities include operation of commercial and custom-modified instrumentation, implementation of new experimental methods, and systematic evaluation of instrument performance. The candidate will contribute to ongoing research and development efforts by assisting in instrument troubleshooting, maintenance, and incremental hardware and method improvements. This role will involve working with experimental systems that may not have established workflows, requiring the ability to diagnose issues, adapt approaches, and document procedures for broader use.
Additional responsibilities include developing and applying programmatic data analysis workflows (e.g., Python-based approaches) to evaluate experimental results, quantify performance metrics, and support reproducible analysis of complex datasets. The candidate will be encouraged to leverage emerging approaches in automation, machine learning, and AI-assisted analysis where appropriate to improve experimental throughput, data interpretation, and reproducibility.
The postdoctoral researcher will collaborate with interdisciplinary teams and EMSL users, contribute to scientific publications and reports, and ensure compliance with laboratory safety and operational standards. This role provides an opportunity to engage in cutting-edge user-driven science while developing expertise in advanced mass spectrometry instrumentation and data-driven experimental workflows.

Requirements

• Candidates must have received a PhD within the past five years (60 months) or within the next 8 months from an accredited college or university.

Nice To Haves

• Ph.D. in chemistry, analytical chemistry, physics, engineering, or a related field, with experience in mass spectrometry or advanced analytical instrumentation.
• Familiarity with high-resolution mass spectrometry platforms (e.g., Orbitrap, FTICR, or Q-TOF) and tandem MS experiments is desirable.
• Candidates should demonstrate experience designing and executing experiments involving complex chemical or biological systems, such as metabolomics, proteomics, environmental samples, or complex mixtures.
• Experience operating laboratory instrumentation and performing basic troubleshooting and maintenance is expected.
• Experience with programming or scripting (e.g., Python) for data analysis, visualization, or workflow automation is highly desirable.
• Candidates should show an interest in developing reproducible and scalable data analysis approaches rather than relying on manual or spreadsheet-based workflows.
• An interest in instrument development, method development, or performance characterization is advantageous.
• Exposure to emerging approaches in automation, machine learning, or AI-assisted data analysis is beneficial but not required.
• The successful candidate should be comfortable working in multidisciplinary teams and engaging with EMSL users in a collaborative research environment.
• Strong written and oral communication skills are required, along with evidence of scientific productivity (e.g., publications or presentations).

Responsibilities

• Operation of commercial and custom-modified instrumentation
• Implementation of new experimental methods
• Systematic evaluation of instrument performance
• Assist in instrument troubleshooting, maintenance, and incremental hardware and method improvements
• Diagnose issues, adapt approaches, and document procedures for broader use
• Developing and applying programmatic data analysis workflows (e.g., Python-based approaches) to evaluate experimental results, quantify performance metrics, and support reproducible analysis of complex datasets
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams and EMSL users
• Contribute to scientific publications and reports
• Ensure compliance with laboratory safety and operational standards

Benefits

• Employees and their families are offered medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, robust telehealth care options, several mental health benefits, free wellness coaching, health savings account, flexible spending accounts, basic life insurance, disability insurance, employee assistance program, business travel insurance, tuition assistance, relocation, backup childcare, legal benefits, supplemental parental bonding leave, surrogacy and adoption assistance, and fertility support.
• Employees are automatically enrolled in our company-funded pension plan and may enroll in our 401 (k) savings plan with company match.
• Employees may accrue up to 120 vacation hours per year and may receive ten paid holidays per year.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees