项目介绍

2025年2月20日

PhD position

There is a vacancy for a PhD Research Fellow at the Geophysical Institute (GFI). The position is for a fixed-term period of 3 years with the possibility of a 4th year with compulsory other work (e.g. teaching duties at the Department) and will cover an important part of the activities at the Bergen Offshore Wind Centre (BOW) targeting at bridging fundamental and applied research within offshore wind energy. This position is associated to the project Development of fast aerodynamic models intended for the optimal design and operation of offshore wind farms by using supervised machine learning – MACHINE WIND, funded by the Akademia agreement between UiB and Equinor.

About the project/work tasks

MACHINE WIND will develop a unified framework for the optimal design and operation of Offshore Wind Energy Farms (OWEFs) by means of the combination and integration of real-time simulation technology and supervised Machine Learning (ML) techniques. This will be achieved by adopting a fast mid-fidelity modeling for the estimation of the aerodynamic loads and power production of the Offshore Wind Energy Converters (OWECs), e.g., the unsteady vortex-lattice method (UVLM), and artificial Neural Networks (NNs) in different flavors and architectures for the estimation of the multiple aerodynamic interactions that take place within an OWEF. Moreover, the fast mid-fidelity modeling will be used to represent the flow at the near field while the ML will be used to represent the flow at the far field, i.e., the far wakes. In addition, we will setup a reduced number of reference OWEF configurations that will be used through Transfer Learning (TL) to investigate more complex OWEF configurations. Here, a configuration is to be understood as a geometrical distribution and orientation of the OWECs over a specific domain within a single OWEF. This kind of approach combining modeling and ML for OWE applications, even when having a huge potential, is still at an early stage. Therefore, we propose to develop such a unprecedented unified framework, which will tremendously simplify and improve the design and operation of OWEFs and thus, it will greatly improve the predictive capabilities with respect to current state-of-the-art methods.

The research activities associated to the position target also at a close collaboration with ongoing research at the BOW and GFI. It is expected that the results emerging from these research activities will be published in highly-ranked international journals.

Qualifications and personal qualities

• Applicants must hold a master’s degree or equivalent education in informatics, mathematics, physics or engineering. Master students can apply provided they complete their final master exam before 30.06.2025. It is a condition of employment that the master’s degree has been awarded. 
• Experience with “Supervised Machine Learning” (ML) is a requirement.
• Programming skills (e.g., Fortran, C++ or Python) is a requirement. 
• Experience with the “Unsteady Vortex-Lattice Method” (UVLM) is an advantage.
• Experience with “High-Performance Computing” (HPC) is an advantage. 
• Applicants must be able to work independently and in a structured manner and demonstrate good collaborative skills. 
• Applicants must be proficient in both written and oral English.

Personal and relational qualities will be emphasized. Ambitions and potential will also count when evaluating the candidates.
 

Special requirements for the position

The University of Bergen is subjected to the regulation for export control system. The regulation will be applied in the processing of the applications.

About the PhD position 

The fellowship will be for a period of 3 years with the possibility for a 4th year, consisting of 25 % compulsory work (e.g. teaching responsibilities at the department) distributed over the employment period. The 4th year is contingent on the qualifications of the candidate and the teaching needs of the department and will be decided by the head of department upon appointment. The employment period may be reduced if you have previously been employed in a qualifying post (e.g., research fellow, research assistant).

About the research training
As a PhD Research Fellow, you must participate in an approved educational programme for a PhD degree within a period of 3 years. The deadline for applying for admission to the PhD programme at The Faculty of Science and Technology is 2 months after you start your position or after the start of the research project that will lead to the PhD degree. It is a condition that you satisfy the enrolment requirements for the PhD programme at the University of Bergen.

We can offer

• a good and professionally stimulating working environment. 
• salary as PhD research fellow (code 1017) in the state salary scale. This constitutes a gross annual salary of NOK 540 500. Further increases in salary are made according to length of service in the position. 
• enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
• good welfare benefits

Your application must include

• a brief account of the applicant’s research interests and motivation for applying for the position. the names and contact information for two referees. One of these should be the main advisor for the master’s thesis or equivalent thesis. 
• CV
• transcripts and diplomas showing completion of the bachelor’s and master’s degrees. If you have not yet completed your master’s degree, please submit a statement from your institution confirming the expected date of award of your master’s degree. Your master’s degree must be documented with transcripts and/or diploma before starting in the position. 
• relevant certificates/references. 
• approved documentation of proficiency in English. 
• a list of any works of a scientific nature (publication list). 
• any publications in your name.
   

The application and appendices with certified translations into English or a Scandinavian language must be uploaded at Jobbnorge.

General information

Detailed information about the position can be obtained by contacting: 

Professor Cristian G. Gebhardt, Geophysical Institute and Bergen Offshore Wind Centre, e-mail: Cristian.Gebhardt@uib.no, tel.: +47 55 58 26 23.

For HR related questions contact HR advisor Maria Svåsand (maria.svasand@uib.no)

Diversity is a strength that enables us to solve our tasks even better. UiB therefore needs qualified employees regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, worldview, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and age.

The University of Bergen applies the principle of public access to information when recruiting staff for academic positions.

Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked not to be named on the list of persons who have applied. The applicant must be notified if the request to be omitted is not met.

The successful applicant must comply with the guidelines that apply to the position at all times.

We encourage applicants with disabilities, immigrant backgrounds, or gaps in their CV to apply. By indicating such circumstances in your application, you may receive favourable consideration. We ensure that at least one qualified applicant from each of these groups is invited for an interview as part of our commitment to inclusivity and equal opportunity. For further information about the recruitment process, click here.