Creative Energy. Supercharged with Science.

Accelerate your career with a new role at the nation's newest national laboratory. Here you can be part of a team exploring the building blocks of matter and lay the ground work for scientific discoveries that will reshape our understanding of the atomic nucleus. Join a community with a common purpose of solving the most challenging scientific and engineering problems of our time.

 

Title Job ID Category Date Posted
ePAS Assistant System Administrator 13246 Engineering
Project Services and Support Office Manager 13006 Management
Scientific Computing Infrastructure Developer 13253 Computer
Storage Solutions Architect 13238 Computer
Communications Office Student Intern 13227 Public Relations
EIC Project Quality Manager 13180 Engineering
CIS Postdoctoral Fellow 13102 Science
EPSCI Computer Scientist 13250 Computer
Staff Scientist I 13249 Science
Associate Project Manager 13234 Management
Hall A/C Spectrometer Staff Engineer II 13172 Engineering
Lead Project Risk Analyst 12345 Engineering
Project Controls Analyst 13070 Clerical/Admin
Survey Engineer 13191 Engineering
Data Scientist Postdoc 13231 Science
Mechanical Technician II - Magnets 13193 Engineering
EIC Detector Work Coordinator 13130 Misc./Trades
Mechanical Engineer III 13189 Engineering
Physics Division Deputy Safety Officer 13206 Engineering
Hall D Postdoctoral Fellow 13038 Science
Manager of Conventional Facilities Project Management 13254 Engineering
Radiation Control Instrumentation Technician I 13243 Environmental Safety
SRF Engineering Manager 13199 Engineering
Designer I 13145 Design
Hall C Staff Engineer 13178 Engineering
Multimedia Intern 13215 Public Relations
Web Developer Technical Student Intern 13228 Public Relations
Construction Manager 12525 Management
Environmental Technician III 13235 Environmental Safety
Civil & Structural Engineer 13211 Engineering
Radiation Control Technician 13149 Technology
Geant4 Developer 13214 Computer
Senior Vacuum Scientist 13187 Science
CEBAF Operability Deputy 13252 Engineering
Project Controls Group Leader 12315 Management
HPC Systems Software Engineer 13204 Computer
Cryogenic Systems Manager (Project Management) 13153 Engineering
Electrical Safety Program Lead 13205 Engineering
Mechanical Engineer III 13140 Engineering
High Throughput Computing Hardware Engineer 13197 Computer
Hall C Postdoctoral Fellow 13129 Science
Facilities Master HVAC Technician 13074 Misc./Trades
SRF Accelerator Physicist 13103 Science
EIC Systems Engineer 13184 Engineering

A career at Jefferson Lab is more than a job. You will be part of “big science” and work alongside top scientists and engineers from around the world unlocking the secrets of our visible universe. Managed by Jefferson Science Associates, LLC; Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility is entering an exciting period of mission growth and is seeking new team members ready to apply their skills and passion to have an impact. You could call it work, or you could call it a mission. We call it a challenge. We do things that will change the world.

Welcome from Stuart Henderson, Lab Director
Why choose Jefferson Lab
  • PASSION AND PURPOSE
    Middle School Science Bowl competitors huddle together to brainstorm the answer.
  • PASSION AND PURPOSE
    Local teachers share ideas for a classroom activity with other teachers during Teacher Night.
  • PASSION AND PURPOSE
    Two young learners hold up a model of the atom during Deaf Science Camp.
  • PASSION AND PURPOSE
    Staff Scientist Douglas Higinbotham snaps a selfie with some of the postdoc students he is mentoring.

At Jefferson Lab we believe in giving back to our community and encouraging the next generation of scientists and engineers. Our staff reaches out to students to advance awareness and appreciation of the range of research carried out within the DOE national laboratory system, to increase interest in STEM careers for women and minorities, and to encourage everyone to become a part of the next-generation STEM workforce. We are recognized for our innovative programs like:

  • 1,500 students from 15 Title I schools engage in the Becoming Enthusiastic About Math and Science (BEAMS) program at the lab each school year.

  • 60 teachers are enrolled in the Jefferson Science Associates Activities for Teachers (JSAT) program at the lab inspiring 9,000 students annually.

  • 24 high school students have internships and 34 college students have mentorships at the lab.

     

Facebook posts
Meet our people
  • Ashley Mitchell, SRF Chemistry Technician

    Chemist Ensures Optimal Functionality of CEBAF Experiments

    Ashley Mitchell considers herself to be a bit of an outlier at Jefferson Lab. In an environment filled with physicists working on cutting-edge experiments, Mitchell is a chemist using tried-and-true formulas to achieve predictable results. Yet, as a superconducting radio frequency chemistry technician II, Mitchell’s role is critical to ensuring that each experiment runs smoothly.

    With a job title as long as hers, Mitchell just tells her friends that she is basically a “dishwasher,” she says. “I tell them that I take super-fancy soaps and potent acids and clean things really well so that they have no particles on them—not even a single speck of dust inside of them. My job is to support the physicists and staff scientists at the lab.”

    Using Chemistry to Support Physicists

    Mitchell receives work orders from scientists and engineers throughout the day as they leave parts and request forms on a receiving table outside of her work room.

    She may complete several different types of jobs in a single day. For example, she may prepare metals to be welded by removing impurities from their surfaces; she may use a 1,300 pounds-per-square-inch high pressure rinse machine to remove materials from a cavity for an upcoming experiment with the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF); or she may run an electrochemical etch on a cavity to smooth the surface for testing.

    Measuring Particles Smaller than a Human Hair

    Scientists have very clear ideas about what they want Mitchell to achieve in order to ensure their cavity functions optimally for their upcoming experiments. “Scientists will either give us a recipe or tell us what their desired outcome is, so we follow their guidelines,” she explains. “They sometimes say something like, ‘Take off exactly 50 microns’ from a cavity.”

    A micron is the equivalent of a micrometer, a millionth of a meter. By comparison, an average human hair is about 100 micrometers thick. “Sometimes they just say, ‘This part needs to be welded and ask us to do a ‘weld prep,’ which means that a surface needs to be cleaned enough so welders can get in and make a quick weld.”

    Before Mitchell makes any irreversible chemical adjustments to equipment, she tests her acid solution to determine exactly how many microns will come off once it is applied to the material. She uses both a thickness gauge and a digital micrometer to read results. “We take a sacrificial piece of metal and dip it in the acid to test how much it’s going to etch over a specific amount of time,” she explains. “We may dip the metal for five minutes and then, based on our results, we know how long to dip the actual part.”  

    Each type of metal requires a different formula. The primary metals used in the lab are niobium, stainless steel, copper and aluminum. “It’s an art form, and I’m learning as I go,” she says. “We have lots of different recipes to work with.”

    Safety First

    In addition to her everyday role at Jefferson Lab, Mitchell also serves as Chair of the Worker’s Safety Committee. The committee acts as an outlet for the workers of the Lab to voice their concerns about safety to lab leadership.  The chemistry room is one of the most dangerous areas of the lab due to the types of acids used, and safety is critical to a healthy work environment. Some of the acids used regularly include hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, phosphoric acid and acetic acid. When she handles acids, Mitchell wears a full suit of personal protective equipment: rain boots, a rubber smock, a ventilated hood, and three pairs of gloves.

    The Art of Science

    With a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a minor in art from Radford University, Mitchell, naturally, views her work in the lab as an art. “All of my professors in college would say that chemistry and art are a great combination. It’s ‘The art of science,’” she says. “With both, you’re manipulating and creating things.”

    Though she rarely works with metal in her artistic pursuits these days, Mitchell does maintain an active interest in art, especially when it means she can use art to entertain her friends. “I host paint nights and craft nights for my friends,” she says. “We get together at one of our houses, and I bring the supplies and we paint something together, or we’ll do a craft.”

    Mitchell and her husband also enjoy fostering dogs, finding hidden gems at yard sales to restore and resell, drinking craft beer, watching odd movies and gardening. The theme to many of her hobbies—and her role at the lab—is the same: Mitchell brings new life to things that need dusting off and tending.

    Chemists at Jefferson Lab use chemicals to:

    • Prepare materials to be welded
    • Clean items with oxidation
    • Polish the interior of cavities
    • Process and neutralize acids and acidic water used in the lab
    • Remove impurities from the surface of equipment

     

     

Youtube videos

The Jefferson Lab campus is located in southeastern Virginia amidst a vibrant and growing technology community with deep historical roots that date back to the founding of our nation. Staff members can live on or near the waterways of the Chesapeake Bay region or find peace in the deeply wooded coastal plain. You will have easy access to nearby beaches, mountains, and all major metropolitan centers along the United States east coast.

To learn more about the region and its museums, wineries, parks, zoos and more, visit the Virginia tourism page, Virginia is for Lovers

To learn more about life at Jefferson Lab, click here.

 

We support our inventors! The lab provides resources to employees for the development of patented technology -- with over 180 awarded to date! Those looking to obtain patent coverage for their newly developed technologies and inventions while working at the lab are supported and mentored by technology experts, from its discovery to its applied commercialization, including opportunities for monetary awards and royalty sharing. Learn more about our patents and technologies here.

  • Katherine Wilson
    Katherine Wilson
    Staff Engineer

    “Generally, the mechanical engineers at the lab support the physicists. The physicists have the big ideas about how to support new science, and the engineers figure out how to make that happen.”

  • Ron Lassiter
    Ron Lassiter
    Mechanical Designer

    “Here at the lab you get to see what you’ve worked on. You can hold it in your hands. It’s rewarding to know that you’ve played a part in helping the machine to be successful.”

  • Welding Program Manager
    Jenord Alston
    Welding Program Manager

    "Everybody in the chain is working towards the same goal: to ensure that everything is built safe and to the code specifications"

  • Pashupati Dhakal
    Pashupati Dhakal
    Accelerator Operations

    "Not every day is the same day. Working in research and development, it’s not a one person job."

  • Jianwei Qiu
    Jianwei Qiu
    Associate Director For Theoretical And Computational Physics

    "My own research enables me to better lead the Theory Center, to lead our collaboration, to provide good guidance to our junior researchers on the team, and to provide valuable input to the advisory and review committees that I serve"

Jefferson Science Associates, LLC manages and operates the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility. Jefferson Science Associates/Jefferson Lab is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, or veteran status or on any other basis prohibited by federal, state, or local law.

If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please send an e-mail to recruiting @jlab.org or call (757) 269-7100 between 8 am – 5 pm EST to provide the nature of your request.

"Proud V3-Certified Company"

A Proud V3-Certified Company
JSA/Jefferson Lab values the skills, experience and expertise veterans can offer due to the myriad of experiences, skill sets and knowledge service members achieve during their years of service. The organization is committed to recruiting, hiring, training and retaining veterans, and its ongoing efforts has earned JSA/Jefferson Lab the Virginia Values Veterans (V3) certification, awarded by the Commonwealth of Virginia.