Founding LPA Engineer (m/f/d)

Overview

Worldwide Placement Limited is seeking a Founding LPA Engineer to join their team in Hamburg, Germany. The company operates in the deep-tech sector, focusing on active muon imaging solutions that combine laser-plasma-accelerator-driven muon sources, particle detectors, and artificial intelligence for industrial quality assessment, security, customs inspection, and medical diagnostics. This permanent, professional role offers an opportunity to build and lead the Muon Source team and develop the transportable muon source machine from the ground up, with potential visa sponsorship available for suitable EU and non-EU candidates.

Requirements

Applicants must hold a doctorate degree, specifically a PhD or Dr., and have a minimum of 3 to 5 years of postdoc experience. Candidates are required to have hands-on laser-plasma accelerator experience, having built and operated an LPA and tuned injection, dephasing, depletion, and guiding physics on real hardware. Necessary qualifications also include previous experience building and leading a technical team, leadership in experimental campaigns at user facilities, high-power laser system literacy, and vacuum and opto-mechanical engineering judgment regarding vacuum chamber design, differential pumping, vibration isolation, and thermal management.

Candidates must possess controls and diagnostics systems thinking to translate unattended, continuous operation into system requirements. Applicants need at least full professional proficiency in English, while knowledge of German or Estonian is considered a plus. The position requires a willingness to work primarily on-site in Hamburg, featuring approximately one home-office day per week, alongside occasional travel to visit and work at research facilities globally.

How to apply

Applicants must be available to start in January 2027 or, at the latest, February 2027.

Key dates

The start date for the position is January 2027 or at the latest February 2027.