Missions

The historic eruption of Toba some 75,000 years ago remains an enigma. While the size of the caldera suggests that it was one of the most violent eruptions of the last 150,000 years, the absence of an unambiguous signal in Antarctic cores has been puzzling the glaciochemical community for decades. Now, the classic and commonly accepted view of a single, major eruption has been called into question by a recent study. Volcanic deposits archived in marine cores suggest that the Toba eruption followed several eruptive phases, spread over several thousand years. The post-doctoral student's work will involve extracting and analyzing several ice cores in order to identify and determine the eruptive dynamics through sulfur isotope and geochemical analyses of volcanic glasses archived in the ice.

Activités

- The successful candidate will contribute to the analysis of ice samples using innovative analytical methods based on sulfate isotope and geochemical analysis of volcanic glasses.
- The candidate will be responsible for conducting the analyses and processing the results.
- He or she will be trained in various analytical techniques (ICP-MS, PANDA ice-core analysis platform, microelectron probe, synchrotron, etc.).
- He or she will play an active role in the management of the Toba project as regards glaciological analyses, regularly reporting on progress made, obstacles encountered and solutions found.
- He or she will be in contact with suppliers of scientific equipment and will be able to clearly express and implement his or her needs.
- The successful candidate will be expected to present his or her results in scientific articles, at international conferences and in working groups dedicated to these issues. The scientific exploitation of results is a central criterion.

Compétences

The successful candidate must
- hold a PhD in analytical geochemistry, atmospheric sciences or paleoclimatology
- be able to communicate orally and in writing in English
- be able to work independently
- ability to work as part of a team
- Proven ability to write scientific articles and/or reports.
- Proficiency in a scientific programming language (R, Python, etc.)

Knowledge in one or more of the following fields
- Geochemistry
- Analytical chemistry
- Atmospheric physical chemistry
- Isotope analysis
- Solid analysis
- Mass spectrometry (IRMS, ICP-MS) and/or electron microprobe analysis (EPMA)

Contexte de travail

The Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement (IGE) is a public research laboratory under the auspices of CNRS, IRD, Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA) and Grenoble-INP, working on climate change of our planet in the polar, mountain and intertropical regions, which are particularly sensitive and have major societal implications.
The laboratory employs an average of 330 people, including 190 permanent members (researchers, teacher-researchers, engineers, technicians and administrative staff) and around 140 PhD students, post-docs and staff on fixed-term contracts. Each year, the laboratory welcomes around 120 interns and visiting scientists. The IGE is housed in four buildings on the Grenoble university campus (glaciology building, OSUG-B, Maison Climat Planète and INRAE-Grenoble Saint Martin d'Hères).
The IGE is one of the main laboratories of the Observatoire des Sciences de l'Univers de Grenoble (OSUG), an INSU federative structure.
The successful candidate will work as part of the IGE's ICE3 team, reporting to Joël Savarino. This position is part of the ANR Toba program. In addition to salary, funding is also available for analyses, scientific communication, missions, publication costs and training.

Contraintes et risques

- Handling cryogenic liquids
- Handling of chemicals
- Research will be carried out in either French or English, although non-French-speaking candidates are expected to make every effort to learn basic French to facilitate communication and integration into the laboratory.