The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University invites applications for one or more postdoctoral researcher positions starting Fall 2026  at the intersection of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and cosmology. 

Research Opportunity 

These positions are an opportunity to join Professor Benjamin D. Wandelt as he establishes a new research group at Johns Hopkins University developing cutting-edge ML/AI tools for cosmological discovery at scale. This is an exciting chance to help build a research initiative from the ground up, contributing to both the scientific direction and collaborative culture of the group. One position is funded by the Simons Collaboration on Learning the Universe (LtU). The Simons Collaboration develops physically grounded models for galaxy formation simulations, creates tools for synthetic observations, accelerates forward modeling using machine learning, and couples physics-based models with simulation-based inference techniques. Our goal: create a robust framework to simultaneously infer fundamental cosmological properties and advance our understanding of galaxy formation physics from state-of-the-art cosmological data sets.

Research Focus 

Postdoctoral researchers will pursue innovative research in: 

• ML acceleration of cosmological simulations and forward modeling 
• Development and application of the LtU-ILI (Implicit Likelihood Inference) pipeline 
• Novel AI/ML methods for large astronomical datasets 
• Human-AI collaboration frameworks for scientific discovery 
• Large-scale applications to observational data from current and future surveys 

Professor Wandelt is an internationally recognized cosmologist and data scientist with over 25 years of experience bridging theoretical cosmology, advanced computational methods and ML/AI. He co-leads the Implicit Likelihood Inference working group of the LtU collaboration. Professor Wandelt holds joint appointments in Physics & Astronomy and Applied Mathematics & Statistics, and is a member of JHU’s Data Science and AI Institute.

The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy ranks among the top physics programs nationally conducting world-class research. The department is housed in the Bloomberg Center for Physics and Astronomy—a state-of-the-art 238,000 square foot facility. The Center for Astrophysical Sciences forms one of the largest astronomy communities in the nation alongside the Space Telescope Science Institute. 

Broader Research Environment 

Johns Hopkins offers an exceptional ecosystem for interdisciplinary research: 

•  Data Science & AI Institute: Part of JHU’s transformative $1 billion investment in data science and AI, including 150 new faculty positions and a dedicated 500,000 sq ft research facility 
•  Cross-disciplinary collaboration: New physics of machine learning initiative, creating unique synergies between fundamental physics and computational methods 
•  Vibrant research community: Strong programs across theoretical, computational, and observational astrophysics, with established connections to applied mathematics, computer science, engineering departments, and beyond. 

Qualifications 

Required:

• Ph.D. in Physics, Astronomy, Computer Science, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, or related field 
• Strong background in cosmology, and machine learning, statistical inference or computational physics 
• Demonstrated research productivity with peer-reviewed publications 
• Programming proficiency in modern scientific computing 
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills 

Preferred:

• Experience with simulation-based inference and Bayesian methods 
• Familiarity with cosmological simulations or observational cosmology 
• ML architecture design and deployment experience
• High-performance computing and large-scale data analysis 
• Background in neural density estimation and advanced ML techniques 

Position Details 

• Duration: 3 years (renewable annual appointments) 
• Rank: Postdoctoral Researcher or Assistant Research Scientist, commensurate with experience Start Date: Fall 2026 (negotiable) 
• Support: Starting salary $67,000-$70,000, comprehensive benefits, conference travel funding, and access to world-class computational facilities, locally and on national facilities
• Professional Development: Opportunities for independent research leadership, mentorship (both as mentor and mentee), collaboration across a global research network, and career advancement 

Why Johns Hopkins? 

This position offers the opportunity to shape a new research program while leveraging: 

• Institutional commitment: JHU’s unprecedented investment positions it as a global leader in AI research 
• Strategic location: Baltimore-Washington corridor with proximity to NASA Goddard, STScI, and numerous research institutions 
• Interdisciplinary culture: Natural connections between physics, data science, and engineering departments 

Johns Hopkins University is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to recruiting a diverse faculty and student body. We encourage applications from women, minorities, protected veterans, individuals with disabilities, and members of other protected groups. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, or any other characteristic protected by law. 

Additional Information

• JHU Postdoc Benefits
• Department of Physics and Astronomy
• Learning the Universe Collaboration
• JHU DSAI Institute 

Application Materials Required:

Submit the following items online at this website to complete your application:

• Curriculum Vitae
• Research statement
• Publication list
• Three reference letters (to be submitted online by the reference writers on this site)
• anything else requested in the position description

Further Info:

Dorothea Nikas

667-306-8559

The Johns Hopkins University
Department of Physics and Astronomy
3400 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21218

The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University invites applications for postdoctoral fellowships in the general area of gravitational physics and gravitational-wave astronomy.

These fellowships offer the opportunity for postdoctoral research that combines academic freedom with strong faculty mentorship in an intellectually vibrant, inclusive, and welcoming department. The Department has strong programs in condensed-matter physics, particle physics, astrophysics, and biological physics and is embarking upon a significant expansion, including growth into new areas of physics. The department also benefits from its close relationship with the Space Telescope Science Institute, located on the Johns Hopkins campus. The candidates are expected to work in Emanuele Berti’s research group (https://pages.jh.edu/eberti2/about/).

The group currently includes 6 postdocs, 7 Ph.D. students, and various undergraduate students supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, NASA, the John Templeton Foundation, the Simons Foundation, and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. The postdoctoral fellows will be provided with support for travel across the nodes of the recently established Simons Collaboration on Black holes and Strong Gravity (SimonsC-BHSG). The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University has a vibrant and interdisciplinary research environment, and the candidates are encouraged to collaborate with other faculty members, students and postdocs working in closely related research areas. More details about the department and its research can be found at https://physics-astronomy.jhu.edu. Consideration of applications will begin on 1 December 2025 and continue until all available positions are filled. Applicants should submit a curriculum vitae, a statement of research interests, and a list of publications, and arrange for at least three letters of reference on their behalf to be submitted to the application website.

Academic Jobs Online https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30711

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

The William H. Miller Ill Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) invites applications for one postdoctoral fellow position to pursue research in time-domain multi-messenger astrophysics with emphasis on data science and Al. The postdoctoral fellow will lead a project focused on developing optimized strategies for observing, processing, and archiving the datasets from current and future large astronomical facilities, with emphasis on radio interferometric arrays, in the pursuit of multi-messenger transients. Key to this project will be the application of Al techniques to streamline the translation of high-level science objectives into concrete observational and computational strategies. This work will be carried out under the supervision of Professor Alessandra Corsi, in close connection with collaborators at the JHU’s Institute for Data-Intensive Engineering and Science (part of the new Data Science and Al center), and at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory.

Required qualifications are:
– PhD in Astronomy, Astrophysics, Physics, or a related field.
– Previous experience in data science, data reduction and analysis, and/or software development.
– Established record of independent research.
– Research expertise in time domain and/or multi-messenger astrophysics.
– Interested in developing new capabilities for observing and data processing of multimessenger transients with modern astronomical data systems and ML/AI models.

Preferred qualifications are:
– Experience with radio interferometric observing, data processing, and imaging
– Experience with modern machine learning/ deep learning techniques and software packages.
– Experience with time-series data of astronomical transients, including gravitational wave data analysis.
– Experience with high-performance or high throughput computing (HPC/HTC).

The initial appointment is for 1 year. It is anticipated that the position will be renewed annually based on satisfactory performance, for a maximum of three years. Applications will be reviewed as received, starting September 30, 2025, and will remain open until the position is filled.

Applications consist of a curriculum vitae, publication list and a description of past research and future interests (maximum of 3 pages including figures and references). Applicants should also arrange to have two or three letters of reference submitted by the same date. The start date is subject to negotiation, but preference will be given to candidates who can start no later than August 2026.

Academic Jobs Online https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/30288
Inquiries may be sent to Professor Alessandra Corsi at [email protected].

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

The Experimental Particle Physics group at the Johns Hopkins University is accepting applications for a postdoctoral fellowship position focused on the CMS experiment at the LHC.

The CMS group at JHU (Profs. Gritsan, Maksimovic, Swartz) has played a significant role in discovery and characterization of the Higgs boson, pursued searches for new beyond-the-standard-model phenomena and tests of electroweak theory, and engaged in development of phenomenological tools for LHC data analysis. The postdoctoral researcher is expected to take a leading role in analyzing Higgs boson data from the Run-3 dataset, contribute to the calibration and alignment of the CMS silicon pixel detector, and participate in the Phase-2 upgrade of the silicon pixel detector. A successful candidate will hold a PhD in experimental particle physics and will have proven expertise in advanced data analysis and phenomenological techniques applied to LHC data, in accordance with the duties outlined above.

Applications should consist of a CV, list of publications, a brief statement of research, and three letters of recommendation. Inquiries may be sent to Professor Gritsan at [email protected]. Consideration of applications will begin on September 1, 2025, and continue until position is filled.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy of the Johns Hopkins University invites applications for postdoctoral appointment in astrophysics, in strong gravitational lensing and supernova science. The successful applicant will be expected to work with Drs. Lou Strolger and Armin Rest in the analyses of strongly lensed supernovae and high redshift supernovae, primarily from the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, the Euclid Space Telescope. Candidates should have strong familiarity with transient science, cosmology, and statistical analysis, and have strong software skills.

Consideration of applications will begin on June 1, 2025, and will continue until the position is filled. It is anticipated that the position will be filled at the rank of Johns Hopkins assistant research scientist, with competitive salaries and generous benefits. We anticipate that the positions will be renewed annually based on satisfactory performance, for an expected total of three years.

Johns Hopkins University is committed to the active recruitment of a diverse faculty and student body. The University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer of women, minorities, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities and encourages applications from these and other protected groups. Consistent with the University’s goals of achieving excellence in all areas, we will assess the comprehensive qualifications of each applicant. The Department of Physics and Astronomy in particular is committed to hiring candidates who, through their research, teaching, and/or service will contribute to the diversity and excellence of the academic community.

Application Details
Applicants should submit application materials to Brandon Elseroad, [email protected]

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University invites applications for a postdoctoral associate position in Experimental Nuclear and Particle Astrophysics.  The Speller group, led by Assistant Professor Danielle H. Speller, focuses on low-temperature searches for physics beyond the standard model, with a concentration on searches for dark matter and neutrinoless double-beta decay.  

A position is now available for the experimental axion dark matter search program at Johns Hopkins in conjunction with the HAYSTAC and ALPHA experiments.  HAYSTAC (the Haloscope At Yale Sensitive To Axion Cold dark matter) is a tunable microwave cavity experiment designed to search for axions with masses above 20 μeV, and has pioneered a number of successful innovations in resonators, sub-quantum limited amplification, and analysis.  ALPHA (the Axion Longitudinal Plasma HAloscope) is a next-generation axion search designed to use tunable wire metamaterial arrays to search for axions above 40 μeV, with a range of sensitivity to QCD axions extending across nearly a decade of parameter space.

The successful candidate is expected to participate in the operations and data analysis of the HAYSTAC experiment, as well as in the commissioning, optimization, and development of analyses for the ALPHA experiment.  The candidate is also expected to take a leadership role in JHU-based testing toward the research and development of future upgrades of ALPHA. Candidates should have a PhD in experimental particle physics or the equivalent, and preference will be given to candidates having experience with cryogenics, microwave electronics, and analysis expertise.

Applications should consist of a CV, list of publications, a brief statement of research, and three letters of recommendation.  Inquiries may be sent to Professor Danielle H. Speller at [email protected].

Review of applications will begin June 1, 2025.  Expected start date is August 2025.  For information on benefits, please see https://hr.jhu.edu/benefits-worklife/.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

 Related URLs: 

JHU Dept of Physics and Astronomy https://physics-astronomy.jhu.edu/

Postdoc Benefits https://provost.jhu.edu/education/postdoctoral-affairs/postdoc-wellness-benefits-and-policies/

The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University invites applications for a postdoctoral associate position in Experimental Nuclear and Particle Astrophysics.  The Speller group, led by Assistant Professor Danielle H. Speller, focuses on low-temperature searches for physics beyond the standard model, with a concentration on searches for dark matter and neutrinoless double-beta decay.  

A position is now available in the Speller group for detector development, and for experimental searches for neutrinoless double-beta decay in association with the Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) and the CUORE Upgrade with Particle IDentification.

Candidates should have a PhD in experimental nuclear or particle physics, or the equivalent.  Preference will be given to candidates having cryogenics, hardware, and strong analysis expertise. 

Applications should consist of a CV, list of publications, brief statement of research, and three letters of recommendation.  Inquiries may be sent to Professor Danielle H. Speller at [email protected].

Review of applications will begin on June 1, 2025. Expected start date will be August 2025 (negotiable). For information on benefits, please see https://hr.jhu.edu/benefits-worklife/.

JHU is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applications from women and members of underrepresented groups.

Related URLs: 

JHU Dept of Physics and Astronomy https://physics-astronomy.jhu.edu/

Postdoc Benefits https://provost.jhu.edu/education/postdoctoral-affairs/postdoc-wellness-benefits-and-policies/

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.

The William H. Miller III Department of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University invites applications for two postdoctoral positions scientist positions to pursue research in cosmology:

(1) One position is predominantly dedicated to the analysis of data from the Cosmology Large Angular Scale Surveyor (CLASS), a CMB polarization experiment. The applicant is expected to work primarily with Prof. Tobias Marriage.

(2) Another position is predominantly dedicated to analysis of data at the interface between cosmological theories and observations, especially CMB data but including other types of measurement as well. The applicant is expected to work primarily with Prof. Charles Bennett.

In both cases candidates are expected to have familiarity with cosmology, Bayesian statistical analysis, and strong software skills. CMB data analysis experience is preferred.

The Johns Hopkins cosmology group offers a rich environment that includes faculty and staff with substantial expertise including experimental, analytical to theoretical. Extensive computational resources are available.

It is anticipated that both postdoc positions will be filled at the rank of Johns Hopkins assistant research scientist, with competitive salaries and generous benefits. We anticipate that the positions will be renewed annually based on satisfactory performance, for an expected total of three years.

Applications will be reviewed as received, starting November 1, 2024, and will remain open until the positions are filled. Applications consist of a curriculum vitae, publication list and a description of past research and future interests. Applicants should also arrange to have two or three letters of reference submitted. The start date is subject to negotiation.

Academic Jobs Online position#28802 https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/28802

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.