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PostDoc position “Computational mechanics for snow avalanche dynamics” (W/M)

Your mission :

The new group of Dr. J. Gaume at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne (EPFL, Switzerland) invites applications by highly motivated, committed, and talented researchers for a PostDoc position in the field of computational mechanics for snow and avalanche modeling.



This group was created in the framework of the SNSF Eccellenza project "Unified modeling of snow and avalanche mechanics using the Material Point Method". The group focuses on the development of new mechanical models to simulate and improve our understanding of snow and avalanche mechanics using a multi-scale framework. Simulations of snow microstructure deformation and failure will allow to define homogenized elastoplastic constitutive models which will be used to study crack nucleation and propagation, avalanche release and flow dynamics at the slope scale. Our simulations are based on the Material Point Method (MPM), a hybrid Eulerian-Lagrangian method particularly well suited to simulate large deformations, fractures, collisions and solid-fluid transitions. It was successfully used to model snow in the Disney movie "Frozen" (Stomakhin et al. 2015, SIGGRAPH) and complex processes involved in avalanche mechanics (Gaume et al. 2018, Nature Communications).



You will investigate the effect of snow mechanical properties on avalanche dynamics using MPM simulations and finite strain elastoplasticity. Different snow types will be used as input of large-scale ideal 2D and 3D avalanche simulations to study how snow mechanical properties affects the avalanche flow rheology, snow entrainment and their complex interplay. This will allow to improve simplified rheological and entrainment models used in avalanche dynamics engineering approaches in order to refine run-out distance and impact pressure estimates required for avalanche risk management. Furthermore, real-scale avalanches will be simulated based on remote sensing data of terrain and snow depth at a fully instrumented test site (Vallée de la Sionne in Valais) and existing simulations of a distributed snow cover (Alpine3D). The avalanche release sizes, run-out distances and pressures obtained in the simulations will be compared to the experimentally measured ones. Finally, you will explore the explicit coupling between snow and air with MPM to simulate the turbulent aerosol in powder-snow avalanches. You will publish your results in renowned scientific journals, present them at international conferences and promote their transfer into practice.
Your profile :

Candidates should hold a PhD in (computational) mechanics, (computational) physics or computer science (or equivalent). Background/experience in solid and/or fluid mechanics, numerical modeling and c++ is mandatory. Additional experience with avalanche dynamics and with continuum numerical methods for solving partial differential equations such as the Finite Element Method and/or the Material Point Method is an advantage. The candidate should have very good English skills and excellent communication capabilities as he will contribute to the supervision of 2 PhD students and MSc students of the group and will be involved in several external collaborations through exchange visits (SLF, UCLA, UPenn).
We offer :

The position is funded at least for 2.5 years




Term of employment :

Fixed-term (CDD)
Duration :

1 year contract renewableContact :

Please send your application (cover letter, detailed resume,

copies of certificates and grades, names of 3 references and a one page summary of your PhD thesis) by e-mail to : johan.gaume@epfl.ch



For additional information, please contact Johan Gaume by e-mailjohan.gaume@epfl.ch