Water Is Part of the Machine

Near a protein, water is shaped by geometry, charge, chemistry, and motion. The question is how interfacial water becomes a collective dynamical medium—coupling distant regions of a protein and participating in function.

We are looking for two exceptional postdoctoral researchers with deep expertise in the physics or chemical physics of water. The work combines molecular simulation, statistical physics, and close contact with experiment.

Questions

• collective polarization and dielectric response;
• spatial and temporal correlations in hydration layers;
• hydrogen-bond dynamics at heterogeneous interfaces;
• water-mediated coupling between charge, motion, and catalysis;
• relaxation and transport near proteins and membranes;
• coarse-grained and continuum theories rooted in molecular behavior;
• experimentally testable signatures of collective interfacial water.

The exact problem will be chosen with the candidate. The criterion is simple: identify a collective property of interfacial water that matters for protein function and tie it to a measurable effect.

Who should apply

Candidates should hold a Ph.D. in physics, chemical physics, physical chemistry, or a closely related field, with a strong background in water, liquids, or interfaces.

• water at interfaces or under confinement, and liquid-state statistical mechanics;
• dielectric relaxation, collective polarization, or hydrogen-bond networks;
• molecular simulation of aqueous systems;
• ultrafast, nonlinear, dielectric, or terahertz spectroscopy;
• hydration near proteins, peptides, membranes, polymers, or biomimetic surfaces.

Experience with biological surfaces is especially valuable, but extensive prior work on proteins is not required. The ideal candidate will bring deep physical understanding, technical strength, independence, and judgment.

At UNIST

The work will be based in the Department of Physics at UNIST in Ulsan, South Korea, with direct contact across molecular simulation, protein science, and experiment.

The position offers a competitive salary and research support. The initial appointment is expected to be for two years, with the possibility of extension. The starting date is flexible.

How to apply

Please send a CV, a short statement of research interests, one or two representative papers, and the names and contact information of two or three referees. The statement should briefly explain the physical questions that interest you, your own contribution to previous work, and what you would like to pursue next.

Applications and informal inquiries should be sent to tsvi@unist.ac.kr.

Posted 29 July 2026. Applications are reviewed until the position is filled.

The group

The group asks how matter becomes machinery: how proteins move and recognize, how water carries interactions, and how information becomes physical.