Controls System Engineer (m/f/d)

Your Profile:

• Bachelor or Master`s degree in physics, electrical engineering, control systems engineering, mechatronics, or a related discipline
  
• A doctoral degree would be considered an advantage, but candidates with strong practical experience are equally encouraged to apply
  
• Solid knowledge and hands-on experience with SPS/PLC systems, automation, and control engineering
  
• Experience in control and instrumentation of large-scale facilities, ideally synchrotron/FEL/neutron instrumentation or comparable complex systems
  
• Familiarity with industrial communication protocols (e.g., OPC UA, Modbus, Profibus, EtherCAT)
  
• Experience with programming and scripting languages (ideally Python, C/C++, or similar) for system integration and automation
  
• Knowledge of data acquisition and experimental control frameworks (EPICS, Tango, or similar)
  
• Fluent in written and spoken English
  
• Very independent and self-motivated way of working but also excellent teamwork skills
  
• High motivation to take on responsibility, ensure system reliability, and develop own research ideas
  
• Willingness for regular business trips and extended stays at partner facilities

Your Tasks:

• System design and implementation for an in-house X-ray beamline for long-term operando investigation of chemical hydrogen storage reactors
  
• Modeling and simulation of the beamline to analyze and optimize system behavior before physical implementation
  
• Development of algorithmus and control software for full automation of long-term and high-troughput operando experiments
  
• Implementation, operation, and optimization of SPS- and PLC-based control systems for experimental equipment and beamline instrumention
  
• Integration of hardware and software interfaces (motors, detectors, sensors, sample environments) into a unified control system
  
• Testing, troubleshooting, and ensuring reliability of automated beamline operations under extended deployment conditions
  
• Design and implementation of data acquisition workflows to ensure reliable storage, transfer, and handling of large experimental datasets in real time
  
• Development of online analysis and monitoring tools to provide rapid feedback during experiments, enabling automated decision-making and system optimization
  
• Close collaboration with synchrotron groups and in-house scientists for design, commissioning, and operation of experiments
  
• Collaboration with the INW-1 machine learning team on data handling, online analysis, design of experiments (DoE), and data categorization to enable efficient and automated evaluation of operando experiments
  
• Collaboration with other groups, in particular at INW and Forschungszentrum Jülich
  
• Participation in extended visits to synchrotron facilities (DESY, ESRF, or similar large-scale research facilities)
  
• Support in establishing the institute`s research infrastructure and laboratory operations

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