Canada Impact+ Emerging Leader in Manufacturing and Advanced Materials

Position Overview

The University of Ottawa invites applications for a tenure-track Canada Impact+ Emerging Leader position in Manufacturing and Advanced Materials, aligned with the Government of Canada's strategic priority area. The position is associated with the Canada Impact+ Research Chair in Emerging Sustainable Materials for the Energy Transition in the Faculty of Engineering under the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairs of Canada Program (formerly Canada Impact+ Research Chairs Program).

The successful candidate will join the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering within the Faculty of Engineering. The faculty seeks an emerging scholar who will establish an internationally recognized, independent research program that complements the Canada Impact+ Research Chair by advancing sustainable nanomaterials and advanced functional materials for energy harvesting, energy storage, and the energy transition. The successful candidate will contribute to the discovery, design, characterization, development, and deployment of next-generation materials that support renewable energy technologies, device engineering, system-level integration, and sustainable manufacturing.

Research Areas of Interest

• Materials for energy storage and conversion, including batteries, hydrogen technologies, fuel cells, electrocatalysts, and solar-energy systems
• Energy harvesting, energy storage integration, device engineering, and system-level applications for sustainable energy technologies
• Sustainable and circular materials, including recyclable, bio-based, and biodegradable polymers and composites
• Nanostructured and multifunctional materials, including photonic and optoelectronic materials for energy conversion, renewable energy technologies, and emerging applications
• AI-guided materials discovery, materials informatics, high-throughput experimentation, and autonomous laboratories
• Recovery, recycling, and substitution of critical or strategic materials
• Functional and responsive materials, including smart polymers, membranes, catalysts, and coatings
• Materials for extreme environments, including lightweight, corrosion-resistant, thermally stable, and high-strength materials
• Advanced biomaterials for health, biotechnology, drug delivery, and biosensors

Research Environment

The successful candidate will benefit from a vibrant interdisciplinary research environment within the Faculty of Engineering, spanning advanced materials, device engineering, and system-level applications, with opportunities for collaboration across the Faculties of Engineering and Science. The successful candidate will have access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure, including the STEM Complex, which houses the Centre for Hybrid Interfaces and Intelligent Thin Films (HIIT) and the Sustainable Soft Materials enabled through Advanced Regulatory Toxicology (SSMART) laboratory, providing leading-edge capabilities in advanced functional materials for emerging technologies. Additional research infrastructure includes the CFI-funded NanoFab core facility for advanced photonics microfabrication, the Materials Characterization Core Facility (MatChar), SUNLAB for solar cell characterization, and the National Research Council–uOttawa Joint Centre for Extreme Photonics. Together, these facilities, combined with strong national and international collaborations and industry partnerships, provide an exceptional environment to establish an internationally competitive research program and translate discoveries into innovative technologies with economic, environmental, and societal impact.

Expectations

The Emerging Leader will be expected to establish an externally funded research program, train highly qualified personnel, foster interdisciplinary collaborations, and translate research discoveries into innovative technologies that strengthen Canada's leadership in Manufacturing and Advanced Materials.

About the University of Ottawa

uOttawa is ranked fifth in research intensity in 2025 and is renowned for pioneering discoveries across multiple disciplines. Several of our research centers and institutes rank among the top 100 globally, including the top six in Canada.

Located in Canada's vibrant capital, uOttawa, proud to be the world's largest bilingual (English and French) university, is minutes away from federal and other government institutions, several national agencies, embassies, international organizations, and connected to the thriving high-tech sector. We are committed to building partnerships across Canada and internationally and fostering innovation and knowledge mobilization in areas of significant social and economic impact.

About the Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders Program

The Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairs of Canada Program is a very prestigious, one-time initiative designed to support universities in attracting world-leading researchers whose work addresses critical national and global challenges. The program also includes Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders awards, a $120M investment to help institutions recruit internationally based early career researchers to Canada.

The Canada Impact+ Emerging Leaders award provides $100,000 per year over six years, with the possibility of a six-year funded extension at the same yearly amount, subject to program conditions. The Canada Impact+ Emerging Leader must be recruited within the same strategic priority area as the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairholder, but the early career researcher (ECR) and the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairholder don't necessarily need to be in the same discipline or research field or be aligned with the same federal research funding agency. The ECR nominees are expected to have an independent program of research, with potential for impact through collaborations with, but not limited to, the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairholders. Institutions may include support for the ECR in their research infrastructure request to the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) through the Impact+ Research Infrastructure fund associated with the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chair.

Note: An early career researcher is a researcher within five years from the date of their first research-related appointment, minus eligible delays in research, where:

• research-related appointments are defined as those where the individual has the autonomy to conduct research independently; and
• all eligible leaves (e.g., maternity, parental, medical, bereavement) are credited as twice the amount of time taken, and professional leaves (e.g., training, sabbatical, administrative) are not credited.

Eligibility of Candidates

Only candidates who are internationally based (both working and residing outside of Canada) when the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chair is accepted are eligible. Candidates who are at uOttawa or are based in Canada are not eligible to apply for this position as stipulated by the Eddie Goldenberg Research Chairs of Canada Program. Candidates must also meet the program's early career researcher eligibility requirements.

The successful candidate will be expected to begin their full-time tenure-track appointment at uOttawa by July 3, 2027.

Required Qualifications

Education: Ph.D. in materials science and engineering, chemical engineering or related fields (please note that this is a requirement from the institution, and not the program).

Required Qualifications: Superior research achievements in the Impact+ Emerging Leader research area and the relevant Government of Canada strategic priority area; evidence of interdisciplinary collaborations, a solid record with respect to teaching and training of students at the graduate level, the ability to obtain external research funds. Excellent communication skills in either English or French. Passive (or active) knowledge of one's second Official Language (French or English) is a requirement for tenure. English-French bilingualism is an asset…