Postdoctoral position in Photonic-based Machine Learning with Ultrafast Architectures

Organisation/Company: Centralesupélec (Metz Campus)

Department: Chair in Photonics

Research Field: Physics " Optics Engineering " Other Technology " Optronics

Researcher Profile: Recognised Researcher (R2)

Positions: Postdoc Positions

Country: France

Application Deadline: 28 Feb 2025 - 23:59 (Europe/Paris)

Type of Contract: Temporary

Job Status: Full-time

Hours Per Week: 39

Offer Starting Date: 1 Apr 2025

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

Physical neuromorphic architectures aim to solve complex tasks with low power intake and high processing bandwidth. Various leading tech companies, start-ups, and academic research centers have focused their current research on using electronic and photonic devices to achieve this objective. Artificial neural networks (ANN) have led to significant success in solving typical benchmark tasks such as time-series predictions, speech processing, and telecom-oriented applications in the past decade. In this context, our team at CentraleSupélec has already positioned itself to leverage photonic ANN (with recurrent topology) to analyze audio, image, and video signals with state-of-the-art performance.

The core objective of the recruited post-doctoral researcher is to develop novel conceptual architecture to solve classification tasks of multimedia signals with novel ultra-fast, large-scale photonic-based architectures while leveraging novel learning paradigms tailored for physical systems.

Where to apply

E-mail:

Requirements

Research Field: Physics " Applied physics

Education Level: PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

The post-doctoral candidate needs a Ph.D. in applied physics, photonics, electrical engineering or a related field. The candidate must have at least one of the following skills:

1. Solid experimental skills in free-space or fibered optical/photonic setup with visible or IR light sources
2. Measurement and instrument control
3. Proficiency in Matlab and/or Python

Knowledge of concepts related to complex physical systems and their numerical simulation is recommended. Knowledge of basic machine learning concepts (e.g., recurrent neural network, reservoir computing, etc.) will help immediately be operational on the project but is not mandatory. A previous experience in the field of photonic reservoir computing will also be highly appreciated but is not compulsory. Expected qualities for the candidate: creativity, autonomy, scientific rigor, and willingness to work in a team. Proficiency in English speaking and writing is mandatory, and French is optional, although welcomed.

Languages: ENGLISH Level Excellent

Years of Research Experience: 1 - 4

Additional Information Eligibility criteria

The selected applicant will be vetted by the French government for both physical and digital access to the laboratory, which is a restricted research area. Given the topic at the interface of machine learning and photonics, EU citizenship is recommended.

Selection process

A short list of candidates will be prepared after receiving the application package. The most promising applicants for the position will then be contacted to be interviewed. Finally, each applicant will be informed of their ranking and about the possibility to join the team if better-ranked candidates do not want to take the position.

Additional comments

Application package: (1) Updated Resume with list of publications, (2) Motivation Letter and (3) Two Reference Letters