Research Scientist: Department of Defense Research Center - UTK

The Research Scientist will advance cold spray deposition science and technology, supporting the Department of Defense-funded initiatives in areas such as structural repair and expeditionary manufacturing. The position involves process development, material compatibility studies, performance validation, and integration of CSAM components into defense platforms. This role will also represent the University of Tennessee in collaborations with government and industry partners, mentor students, manage cold spray infrastructure, and contribute to the technical leadership of the UT Defense Research Center. This is a grant-funded position and is contingent upon the continued funding of the grant.

The Research Scientist will be responsible for the following:

• Designing and executing experiments to evaluate cold spray deposition performance across metals, polymers, spatially graded, and hybrid material systems.
• Optimizing spray parameters for both high- and low-pressure systems to achieve robust bonding, dimensional accuracy, and repeatability.
• Characterizing as-sprayed materials and build quality using microscopy, profilometry, ultrasonic inspection, and mechanical evaluation.
• Studying particle-substrate interactions, critical velocity behavior, and deposition efficiency across various feedstock types and substrates.
• Conducting post-process evaluations to assess performance metrics including adhesion, wear resistance, fatigue, and environmental durability.
• Implementing and refining in-situ monitoring tools to measure particle velocity, substrate temperature, and deposition rate.
• Developing models and data-driven methods to correlate process parameters with deposition quality and performance.
• Support efforts in developing process qualification pathways and performance benchmarks for CSAM parts.
• Mentoring students, technicians, and DoD collaborators in cold spray system operation, safety, experimental design, and data analysis.
• Providing technical instruction on cold spray system capabilities, maintenance, and safe laboratory practices.
• Overseeing the operation and maintenance of cold spray systems and supporting characterization tools.
• Leading and supporting manufacturing demonstrations and development efforts with DoD and industry partners.
• Hosting facility tours, technical briefings, and collaborative engagements with external stakeholders and sponsors.

Required Qualifications:

• Education: Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering or job-related Engineering disciplines
• Experience: 3 years of experience in cold spray additive manufacturing and repair
• Knowledge, Skills, Abilities: Knowledge of operation and ability to use cold spray for part production, repair, and experiments for model development. Ability to use and interpret results of measurements performed during operations and post characterization. Technical writing skills for proposals, reports, and manuscript preparation. Strong interpersonal and collaborative relationship skills are needed for success in this role.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Education: Doctoral Degree in Mechanical Engineering or job-related Engineering disciplines
• Experience: 1 year or more experience in CNC machining. 1 year or more experience with structured light scanners, coordinate measuring machines, optical profilometers.1 year or more experience with other additive manufacturing processes for metals, polymers, or ceramics.
• Knowledge, Skills, Abilities: Knowledge and operation of materials characterization techniques such as optical microscopy, SEM/EDS, EBSD, XRD, microhardness testing, and mechanical evaluation (tensile, compression, fatigue). Knowledge of operation and ability to use CNC machining for part production and experiments. Knowledge of operation and ability to use wire electrical discharge machining for part production. Knowledge of operation and ability to use and interpret results of measurements performed using structured light scanners, coordinate measuring machines, optical profilometers. Knowledge of operation and ability to use of other additive manufacturing techniques and in-situ monitoring for metal and hybrid materials components. Ability to perform experiments for model development

Work Location:

• Location: Knoxville, TN
• Onsite

Compensation and Benefits:

• UT market range: MR13
• Find more information on the UT Market Range structure here
• Find more information on UT Benefits here

Application Instructions:

To express interest, please submit an application with the noted below attachments. To be assured of full consideration, completed applications with all requested materials.

• Resume
• Cover Letter
• List of 3 Professional References

About The College/Department/Division:

The Tickle College of Engineering is in the midst of an unprecedented period of growth and success including adding over 30 new faculty as part of ambitious cluster hiring campaigns led by Chancellor Donde Plowman and Dean Matthew Mench. Since 2021, the college has set records in research expenditures, enrollment, incoming student GPA, intellectual property development, and USNWR rank. New facilities include the state-of-the art Zeanah Engineering Complex, the University of Tennessee Manufacturing and Design Enterprise (TN-MADE) facility, and the Innovation South building which houses UTK’s Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility (FCMF). TCE currently has 208 Tenure/Tenure Track and 65 Non-Tenure Track faculty in its nine academic departments and offers 13 undergraduate, 16 MS, and 15 PhD degree programs. Affiliated with TCE and located in Tullahoma, Tennessee, the UT Space Institute is a hub of aerospace and defense research. The college is also home to eight research centers and three interdisciplinary institutes. With approximately 4,300 undergraduate and 1,500 graduate students, the college sits 29th among public universities in the most recent U.S. News and World Report graduate rankings. Faculty in the college have won 29 early career awards (NSF, DoE, DARPA, AFOSR, and ARO) since 2016. In FY24, the college had NSF HERD research expenditures of $121 million.