NASA Postdoctoral Program - Terahertz Technology Development

The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers unique research opportunities to highly-talented scientists to engage in ongoing NASA research projects at a NASA Center, NASA Headquarters, or at a NASA-affiliated research institute. These one- to three-year fellowships are competitive and are designed to advance NASA's missions in space science, Earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, and astrobiology. This specific research opportunity focuses on the development of terahertz sensors, sources, and instruments for applications in Earth, planetary and space science. Emphasis is placed on laboratory technology demonstration for future insertion into ongoing or upcoming NASA mission proposal opportunities. Candidates will work with an experienced team of technologists and instrument designers who specialize in terahertz devices, systems, components and applications at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Specific component-based research topics include terahertz Schottky mixers and detectors, superconducting detectors and down converters, terahertz oscillators, amplifiers and electron tube sources, nanotubes, photomixers, bolometers, passive THz waveguide and quasi-optical elements, and THz antennas and planar arrays. Applications include passive remote sensing (both room temperature and cryogenically cooled systems), active spectroscopy (frequency and time domain), advanced radar imaging, biomedical interactions and exobiology.