Postdoctoral Researcher in Semantic Knowledge Engineering & Interoperability in Materials Science in the field of Materials Science, Physics, Computer Science, Data Science, Information Science, or comparable disciplines
Salary group 13 TVöD
Temporary contract until 31.05.2030
Suitable for full-time or part-time work
The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) is a scientific and technical federal agency headquartered in Berlin. As a research institute under the Federal Ministry for Economy and Energy, we conduct research, testing, and provide consulting services to protect people, the environment, and property. Our work in materials science, materials engineering, and chemistry focuses on the technical safety of products and processes.
As part of the European MaterialsCommons project, BAM is collaborating with international partners to develop a federated digital research infrastructure for the materials sciences. The goal is to establish interoperable, trustworthy data spaces where scientific and industrial stakeholders can securely and sustainably share and use data, workflows, and digital tools. A key focus is on establishing semantic interoperability as well as FAIR-compliant and AI-ready data and knowledge structures as the foundation for a networked research and innovation landscape.
The focus of this work is on designing semantic knowledge models for digital materials research at the intersection of materials science and knowledge engineering in the context of federated data infrastructures. In collaboration with academic and industrial partners, domain-specific requirements are identified and analyzed based on concrete use cases and translated into formal knowledge representations. These form the basis for the development and integration of semantic models into ontologies and knowledge graphs as a semantic layer of federated data ecosystems. The goal is the harmonization and interoperable use of research data within the European research area.
We offer:
- Access to high-quality continuing education and training on digitalization topics such as programming, research data management, AI applications, and scientific computing.
- Networking and exchange in our interdisciplinary digitalization communities and at BAM digitalization events to develop innovative solutions together with our experts.
- Targeted acquisition of skills in key technologies for laboratory digitalization—modern programming paradigms, connection to the electronic laboratory notebook, and development of metadata formats and ontologies—through practical learning formats such as workshops, online courses, and collaborative training with bundled knowledge sources.
- Opportunity to actively participate in shaping BAM digitization projects and to contribute your own ideas for digital innovations.
We are looking for talented people to join us.
- Job-ID: J000000163
- Location: Berlin
- Organization: Vice President
- Job Category: Science/Research
- Working hours: Full-time / part-time possible
- Published: 16.07.2026
Your responsibilities includeYour responsibilities include
- Design, implementation, and facilitation of structured use-case requirements gathering and analysis with academic and industry stakeholders (interviews, workshops, community events)
- Translating results into formal specifications and interoperability requirements (including user stories, competency questions, and modeling requirements)
- Analysis, structuring, and generalization of domain-specific concepts, entities, processes, and roles to develop reusable semantic patterns
- Development, maintenance, and integration of ontologies and knowledge graphs using established upper ontologies (e.g., BFO, PMDco, EMMO)
- Analysis, selection, and integration of existing ontologies, taxonomies, and terminologies into a consistent semantic architecture
- Design and implementation of semantic mappings, alignments, and transformation rules between ontologies and heterogeneous data models
- Definition and support of FAIR-compliant representation and serialization strategies (RDF/RDFS, OWL, JSON-LD, SHACL)
- Design and co-develop of semantic search, navigation, and visualization concepts for research data infrastructures based on the developed knowledge models
- Design and implementation of dissemination, training, and community activities to establish semantic standards in research and industry
- Preparation of documentation, guidelines, scientific publications, presentations and contributions at professional conferences, workshops, and other communication and knowledge-transfer formats
Your qualificationsYour qualifications
- A very strong academic degree (Master’s/Diploma) in materials science, physics, computer science, data science, information science, or a comparable field, supplemented by an excellent Ph.D.
- Demonstrable expertise in ontology engineering and semantic technologies, as well as practical experience with ontology development processes and toolchains (e.g., Protégé, ROBOT, ODK, Git-based workflows)
- Experience in developing semantic interoperability solutions based on established top-level ontologies, particularly BFO and PMDco (knowledge of EMMO is a plus)
- Experience in facilitating and organizing interdisciplinary workshops with academic and/or industry stakeholders for structured requirements gathering
- A proven track record of scientific publications and presentations in the field of semantic technologies, data infrastructures, or digital (materials) science
- Fluency in spoken and written English
- Strong analytical thinking skills, conceptual modeling abilities, and the ability to work independently in complex scientific environments
- Effective communication and information management skills, goal-oriented and structured way of working, initiative and commitment and strong decision-making skills as well as conceptual, strategic and innovative thinking skills
Our BenefitsOur Benefits
- Work in national and international networks with universities, research institutions, and industrial companies
- Attractive location
- Equal opportunities and diversity
- Comprehensive and interdisciplinary training and further education opportunities
- A responsible, interesting, and varied job in a professional and collegial environment.
- Fair pay in accordance with union agreements
- Flexible working hours
- Diverse tasks in a dynamic and future-oriented market at the interface between science, business, and politics.
- Further development of your personal strengths in conjunction with a socially balanced working environment and a comprehensive range of training opportunities.
- Certified family-friendly working environment
- Access to high-quality continuing education opportunities and training on digitalization topics for targeted/specialized professional development.
Work in national and international networks with universities, research institutions, and industrial companies; Attractive location; Equal opportunities and diversity; Comprehensive and interdisciplinary training and further education opportunities; A responsible, interesting, and varied job in a professional and collegial environment.; Fair pay in accordance with union agreements; Flexible working hours ; Diverse tasks in a dynamic and future-oriented market at the interface between science, business, and politics.; Further development of your personal strengths in conjunction with a socially balanced working environment and a comprehensive range of training opportunities.; Certified family-friendly working environment; Access to high-quality continuing education opportunities and training on digitalization topics for targeted/specialized professional development.
Your applicationYour application
We welcome applications via the online application form by 14.08.2026. Alternatively, you can also send your application by post, quoting the Job-ID to:
Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung
Referat Z.3 - Personal
Unter den Eichen 87
12205 Berlin
GERMANY
www.bam.de
BAM promotes professional equality between women and men. We therefore particularly welcome applications from women. At the same time, we strive to reflect social diversity. Every application is therefore welcome, regardless of gender, cultural or social background, religion, ideology or sexual identity.
In addition, BAM has set itself the goal of promoting the professional participation of people with severe disabilities. The fulfillment of the job requirements is considered on an individual basis. Severely disabled persons or persons of equal status will be given preferential consideration if they are equally qualified.
The advertised position requires a low level of physical aptitude.
ContactContact
Digital Transformation, Office of the Vice President
Unter den Eichen
12205 Berlin
+49 30 8104-4712
bernd.bayerlein@bam.de