Experimental Scientist / Engineer – Superconductors

Mercor is seeking experimental scientists and engineers specialising in superconductors to support a frontier AI research lab building advanced models for materials science and the physical sciences. This is hands-on, expert-level work: you'll apply deep, specialised knowledge of superconducting materials, synthesis, characterisation, transport measurements, thin films, and superconducting devices to generate, structure, and evaluate the scientific data these models learn from — and your input will directly shape how advanced models reason about superconducting materials, properties, experiments, and devices.

Key Responsibilities:

• Contribute deep domain expertise across superconducting material synthesis, characterisation, experimental superconductivity, fabrication, and device physics to build high-quality training and evaluation data.

• Review and evaluate AI-generated scientific reasoning related to superconducting materials and phenomena, identifying experimental or theoretical errors and improving technical accuracy.

• Design and solve challenging, expert-level problems involving critical temperature (Tc), critical current density (Jc), critical magnetic fields, magnetic susceptibility, electrical transport, flux pinning, vortex behaviour, and structure–property relationships.

• Analyse and reason about experimental results from techniques such as XRD, SEM/TEM, SQUID/VSM magnetometry, resistivity and magnetotransport measurements, spectroscopy, and cryogenic measurements.

• Rate and rank model outputs against defined scientific criteria, providing clear written reasoning grounded in experimental superconductivity.

• Structure technical knowledge — including synthesis procedures, processing parameters, phase and structural data, transport measurements, magnetic measurements, and device data — into well-organised, model-ready data.

• Deliver reliable, technically rigorous, high-quality work within defined timelines.

You're a strong fit if you have:

• Hands-on experimental experience with one or more classes of superconducting materials, including cuprate/high-temperature superconductors, iron-based superconductors, conventional superconductors, MgB₂, REBCO/YBCO systems, or emerging superconducting materials.

• Experience with superconducting material synthesis or processing, such as solid-state synthesis, single-crystal growth, powder processing, thin-film deposition, or related techniques.

• Strong experience characterising superconducting properties through electrical resistivity/transport, magnetotransport, magnetic susceptibility, SQUID/VSM magnetometry, critical current measurements, critical field measurements, or cryogenic experiments.

• Strong understanding of superconducting phenomena, including Tc, Jc, critical magnetic fields, Meissner effect, flux pinning, vortex dynamics, and the relationship between material structure and superconducting performance.

• Experience with superconducting thin films, heterostructures, or device fabrication using techniques such as PLD, MBE/epitaxy, sputtering, lithography, etching, or clean-room micro/nanofabrication — a plus.

• Experience with applied superconductors or superconducting devices, such as superconducting wires and tapes, coated conductors, Josephson junctions, SQUIDs, superconducting circuits, resonators, detectors, or superconducting quantum devices — a plus.

• An advanced degree (PhD/MS) or equivalent hands-on research experience in materials science, condensed matter physics, applied physics, chemistry, electrical engineering, or a closely related field.

• Clear written English and the ability to explain complex experimental results and technical reasoning concisely.

Why Join:

• Shape frontier AI for superconductivity: Apply your expertise to improve how advanced AI models reason about superconducting materials, experiments, properties, and devices.

• Work on technically challenging problems: Engage with expert-level questions spanning superconducting synthesis, characterisation, transport, cryogenic measurements, thin films, and device physics.

• Translate experimental expertise into AI capability: Your hands-on research experience will directly contribute to creating scientifically rigorous training and evaluation data for next-generation models.

• Long-term research opportunity: Contribute to an ongoing collaboration at the intersection of superconductivity, materials science, and frontier AI research.

We consider all qualified applicants without regard to legally protected characteristics and provide reasonable accommodations upon request.

Contract and Payment Terms

• You will be engaged as an independent contractor.
• This is a fully remote role that can be completed on your own schedule.
• Projects can be extended, shortened, or concluded early depending on needs and performance.
• Your work at Mercor will not involve access to confidential or proprietary information from any employer, client, or institution.
• Payments are weekly on Stripe or Wise based on services rendered.
• Please note: We are unable to support H1-B or STEM OPT candidates at this time.

About Mercor

Mercor partners with leading AI labs and enterprises to train frontier models using human expertise. You will work on projects that focus on training and enhancing AI systems. You will be paid competitively, collaborate with leading researchers, and help shape the next generation of AI systems in your area of expertise.