Funder: NRC Research Associateship Programs
Due Dates: May 1, 2025 | August 1, 2025 | November 1, 2025 | February 1, 2026
Funding Amounts: Base stipend approximately $95,000 with $5,000 travel allowance; supplements based on experience; typical tenure 2-3 years.
Summary: Supports postdoctoral and senior researchers to develop and characterize photorefractive materials, including hybrid organic-inorganic types, for optical device applications and study their electrical properties.
Key Information: Open to U.S. citizens; requires Ph.D. or equivalent; applicants must contact Research Adviser prior to applying; relocation and health insurance benefits included.
Description
This fellowship opportunity focuses on the development and characterization of photorefractive materials for use in all-optical devices. Photorefractive materials enable energy transfer between light beams via photorefractive gratings. The research includes studying inorganic photorefractives using contra-directional two-beam coupling, where two counter-propagating beams interfere to form reflection gratings. This method simplifies experiments by using one incident beam and a second beam generated by Fresnel reflection inside the material.
The program also investigates photorefractive transmission gratings in hybrid organic-inorganic materials and explores light scattering effects in hybrid photovoltaic liquid crystal cells. Incorporation of ferroelectric nanoparticles into hybrid materials aims to enhance optical gain.
Research targets understanding the physics of bulk and hybridized photorefractive materials across visible, near-infrared, and infrared spectral regions. The electrical properties, especially the photovoltaic effect's influence on grating formation, are also key interests.
Due Dates
- February 1, 2025 (Early March review)
- May 1, 2025 (Early June review)
- August 1, 2025 (Early September review)
- November 1, 2025 (Early December review)
Note: If a deadline falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it is moved to the next business day.
Funding Amount
- Base stipend: Approximately $95,000 per year
- Travel allowance: $5,000 annually
- Experience-based stipend supplements available for postdoctoral and senior researchers
- Typical award duration: 2-3 years
- Additional benefits include paid relocation (if relocating more than 50 miles) and group health insurance coverage for awardees and dependents
Eligibility
- Citizenship: Open to U.S. citizens only
- Education: Must have earned a Ph.D., Sc.D., M.D., D.V.M., or equivalent research doctorate before starting tenure
- Experience:
- Postdoctoral applicants: Doctorate earned less than 5 years before application deadline
- Senior applicants: Doctorate earned at least 5 years prior or permanent appointment with significant research contributions
- Applicants must not have current or recent prior employment or postdoctoral fellowship affiliation with the sponsoring agency
- Applicants must contact the proposed Research Adviser before applying to discuss research plans and funding availability
Application Process
- Identify research opportunities and confirm eligibility on the NRC RAP website
- Contact the Research Adviser listed for the opportunity to discuss the project and confirm support
- Prepare application materials including:
- Profile information (contact, education, transcripts for postdocs)
- Research proposal (up to 10 pages) detailing problem statement, background, methodology, expected results, and significance
- Letters of recommendation (minimum 3, including dissertation adviser for postdocs)
- Submit application via the NRC RAP online portal before the deadline
- Letters of recommendation must be uploaded by letter writers through the online system by the deadline
- Applications are reviewed by expert panels in relevant scientific disciplines
- Applicants scoring 70+ out of 100 are recommended for awards, subject to funding availability
Additional Information
- Health insurance is mandatory for the duration of the tenure
- Relocation assistance is provided for awardees moving more than 50 miles
- Annual travel allowance supports conference attendance and fieldwork
- Applicants with prior NRC Research Associateships must wait at least two years before reapplying
- Review feedback is provided approximately one week after panel decisions
- Applications with incomplete or missing materials will not be reviewed
External Links
Contact Information
| Contact | Details |
|---|
| Program Contact Email | rap@nas.edu |
| Program Phone | 202-334-2760 |
| Research Adviser | Dean R. Evans |
| Adviser Email | dean.evans@us.af.mil |
| Adviser Phone | 850-226-1854 |
| Funder Address | 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 576, Washington, DC 20001 |