Postdoctoral position - Rock weathering experiments with microbial ecosystems under Archean conditions

staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The challenge :

Did life shape the surface of the early Earth? For most of its history, microorganisms were the only life forms populating the ocean and continents, in a world with a faint young Sun, an anoxic atmosphere and oceans, and possibly no plate tectonics. Rock weathering regulates the carbon–climate system and the habitability of a planet, and microorganisms can influence it directly (through their metabolisms) or indirectly (through the chemical reactions they are involved in).

One of the PhD students of the Pandora project has designed and built an experimental set-up at CEREEP ECOTRON Île-de-France that reproduces rock weathering under Archean-like conditions, with and without a microbial ecosystem from the anoxic waters of Lac Pavin, a ferruginous maar lake in the Massif Central. Water–rock and water–air calibrations and sterilization tests are completed: the experiments are ready to go and we are looking for completing the team.

Do you have experience in microbial ecology, geomicrobiology or astrobiology, and in anoxic microbial cultures and incubations?

We’re looking for our future postdoctoral researcher in geomicrobiology!

Join us at Université Côte d’Azur/CEREEP ECOTRON Île de France, recognized for their scientific and educational excellence, to create a responsible and innovative university to serve as a model for the 21st century.

Your missions :

You will work alongside the PhD student who built the experiment, and you will be involved in the biological component of the project and extend it with a new experiment.

• Lead the biological side of the current experiment: monitor the microbial ecosystem (Archean-like functions: methanogens, methanotrophs, sulfate-reducing, sulfur-oxidizing and nitrate-reducing microorganisms) in the incubated versus sterile reactors.
• Characterize the microbial communities: DNA extraction and metabarcoding, together with the Genoscope team, and interpretation of community composition across rock types and conditions.
• Co-organize a field campaign at Lac Pavin: sample anoxic water below 60 m (Niskin bottles, in-situ incubations of rocks) and bring the samples back under anoxic conditions for use in the experiments.
• Design, set up and run a new experiment similar to the existing one, using the freshly collected samples, and publish the results in international journals and present them at conferences.

• Type of Recruitment: Contractual (18 months temporary contract, CDD)
• Category: Post-Doctoral Researcher
• Working Hours: Full-time
• Location: UMR Géoazur , Campus Azur du CNRS 250 rue Albert Einstein - CS 10269 - F 06905 SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS Cedex
• Reference Number : 2026-DDIE06

Where to apply

E-mail: Chaima.MOHAMED@univ-cotedazur.fr

Requirements

Research Field: Biological sciences » Biology
Education Level: PhD or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

• You possess a PhD in biology, microbiology, geomicrobiology or astrobiology (or a closely related field) and a strong interest in the evolution of the Earth and the interactions between life and minerals.
• You have mastered molecular microbiology techniques (DNA extraction, PCR, metabarcoding and bioinformatic analysis of sequencing data) and, ideally, anaerobic culture or incubation techniques.
• You are autonomous, rigorous and at ease in field work (boat-based sampling on a lake) as well as in a geochemistry laboratory.
• You like interdisciplinary teamwork between geology, geochemistry and biology, and communicating your results in English (French is a plus).

Specific Requirements

PhD in biology, geomicrobiology or astrobiology

Internal Application form(s) needed

2026-DDIE06 Post-doc ENG.pdf — English (455.93 KB - PDF)

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available: 1
Company/Institute: DDIE
Country: Europe

Contact

City: Nice
Website: https://univ-cotedazur.fr
Street: 28 av de valrose
Postal Code: 06100