W2 Professorship (W3 tenure track position) in Functional Materials

16 Apr 2026
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Saarland University

Research Field

Other

Researcher Profile

Established Researcher (R3)

Positions

Postdoc Positions

Application Deadline

28 May 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Berlin)

Country

Germany

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by a EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

This professorial position is a fixed-term public sector appointment (‘Beamtenverhältnis auf Zeit’) for a maximum period of six years. If the tenure evaluation procedure (teaching appraisal and external assessment of research work) is positive, the appointee will be promoted to a permanent professorship (lifetime tenure) at the German academic salary scale W3. 

This professorship covers the field of modern functional materials, focusing strongly on sustainability, the circular economy and resource-efficient technologies. It will be a central element of the department’s future strategic research priorities: Multifunctional Materials & Systems; Sustainability and the Circular Economy; Digitalization, Data and AI. The person appointed to this position will advance research spanning multiple material classes in the areas of hierarchically structured functional materials and/or functional hybrid materials for sustainability and energy applications. Potential research topics include: adaptive and switchable meta-materials; 2D- and 3D-organized functional materials as platforms for catalyst or electrode materials; solid-state electrolytes; and materials for hydrogen storage. Work in these fields will encompass the development, experimental investigation and evaluation of functional materials with a view to improved resource efficiency and lower carbon footprints. 

The University is also inviting applications for four further professorships in the fields of Product Development and Circularity-Driven Design (m/f/x; reference no.: W2765), Sustainable Metallurgy and Structural Materials in a Circular Economy m/f/x, reference no.: W2764), Applied Mechanics (m/f/x; reference no.: W2677) and Advanced Recycling Processes for Circular Material Flows   (m/f/x; reference no.: W2763). Applicants whose research focus is between any of these areas are encouraged to submit a separate application to each professorship position for which their scientific profile is suitable.

Where to apply

Website

https://www.uni-saarland.de/verwaltung/berufungen/online-berufungsportal/w2675-…

Requirements

Research Field

Other

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

The person appointed will also be expected to develop strategies that enhance the circularity, recyclability and reuse of modern materials (‘design for recycling’), and to participate in research data management initiatives.

Your teaching duties will cover the field of functional materials with particular emphasis on sustainable technologies. In the fixed-term W2 phase of the professorship, you will be expected to contribute substantially to core teaching in the Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes (e.g. ceramic and glasses, functional materials, 3D analysis of microstructures). In the subsequent W3 phase, you will establish a new teaching module whose focus will be on sustainability. In addition, you will play an active role in the materials science and engineering practical and laboratory courses and will be closely involved in the ongoing development of the department’s degree programmes.

You will engage in interdisciplinary collaborative teaching and research, particularly with external research institutes (INM, ZeMa, IZFP, DFKI, HIPS), and will contribute to the acquisition and implementation of regional, national and international research consortia – especially in sustainability research and the circular economy.

The successful applicant will be a university graduate with a degree in materials science, materials engineering, chemistry, physics or a related discipline and will have a strong track record of sustained high-quality research in sustainable, hierarchically structured and/or hybrid functional materials. You will have demonstrated your expertise through publications in leading, high-impact journals, your record of securing external research funding, and through your active engagement with the scientific community. An aptitude for and a strong commitment to university-level teaching, the ability to work well in a team and a collaborative approach to research are required.

We expect you to: (i) play an active role in the internationalization of the university, particularly through collaborative initiatives with partners in Transform4Europe alliance and the University of the Greater Region network, as well as with EUSMAT; (ii) contribute to academic self-governance and administrative work (during the W2 phase at least at departmental level, and subsequently at faculty and university level); and (iii) support and supervise junior and early-career researchers.

Specific Requirements

The appointment will be made in accordance with the general provisions of German public sector employment law. Please refer to Section 41 of the Saarland Higher Education Act (SHSG, current version available at https://recht.saarland.de/bssl/document/jlrHSchulGSLrahmen ).

Languages

ENGLISH

Level

Good

Languages

GERMAN

Level

Excellent

Additional Information
Selection process

To apply for this position, please submit your application by no later than 28 May 2026 via Saarland University’s online professorial appointments platform: www.uni-saarland.de/berufungen . Application documents must be uploaded as a single PDF file (max. size 10 MB) and should include the following documents in the order specified:

• Cover letter
• CV (incl. list of external research funding and awards)
• List of publications and details of external research funding secured
• Overview of research (previous work and research planned at Saarland University, max. 5 pages)
• Teaching credentials (list of previous courses taught incl. evaluations, explanatory outline of your teaching concept and approach; max. 5 pages)
• Academic qualifications (undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD/doctoral degree certificates, habilitation (if applicable) and other relevant credentials)
• Full copies of your three most important publications
• Proof of disability if you declared a disability in your application
• If you hold a university degree from a non-German university, please provide proof of equivalence from Germany’s Central Office for Foreign Education (ZAB) if available. If you have not yet requested proof of equivalence from ZAB, you must submit proof at a later date if so requested.

Additional comments

Saarland University views internationalization as a process spanning all aspects of university life. We therefore expect members of our professorial staff to promote and foster further internationalization. Special support will be provided for projects that expand collaboration within existing international cooperative networks, e.g. projects with partners in the European University Alliance Transform4Europe (www.transform4europe.eu ) or the University of the Greater Region (www.uni-gr.eu ).

In accordance with the objectives of its gender equality plan, Saarland University is actively seeking to increase the proportion of women in this field. Qualified women candidates are therefore strongly encouraged to apply. Preferential consideration will be given to applications from disabled candidates of equal eligibility. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, nationality, ethnic heritage or social background, religious beliefs, personal beliefs or values, disability, age, sexual orientation or identity.

When you submit a job application to Saarland University, you will be transmitting personal data. Please refer to our privacy notice for information on how we collect and process personal data in accordance with Art. 13 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (www.uni-saarland.de/en/privacy ).By submitting your application, you confirm that you have taken note of the information in the Saarland University privacy notice.

Website for additional job details

https://www.uni-saarland.de/fileadmin/upload/verwaltung/berufungen/EN_W2675_W2T…

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Saarland University

Country

Germany

State/Province

Saarland

City

Saarbruecken

Postal Code

66123

Street

Campus

Geofield

Contact

State/Province

Saarland

City

Saarbrücken

Website

https://www.uni-saarland.de/

Street

Campus A2 3

Postal Code

66123

E-Mail

karen.lienkamp@uni-saarland.de

STATUS: EXPIRED

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