Opening Date: July 23, 2026

Closing Date: Until Filled

Call for Expressions of Interest

Ramón y Cajal Fellowship Programme 2026 – Tenure-Track Position in Gravitational-Wave Physics at IFAE

The Institut de Física d’Altes Energies (IFAE) in Barcelona, a Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence, invites expressions of interest from candidates wishing to apply to the Ramón y Cajal (RyC) 2026 Programme in the field of Gravitational-Wave (GW) Physics. The RyC Programme aims to attract outstanding postdoctoral researchers to the Spanish science, technology, and innovation system through five-year contracts. In the 2026 call, RyC fellows will receive the resources needed to lead their own research programmes, thereby establishing a clear pathway towards permanent integration into the Spanish research system. Demonstrated potential to secure competitive research funding, particularly through European Research Council (ERC) grants, is considered an important asset for successful RyC applicants.

IFAE is seeking candidates with a demonstrated track record of research excellence and leadership in ground-based interferometric gravitational-wave detector technology. The successful candidate is expected to play a leading role in defining and developing IFAE’s experimental programme, contributing to the operation and upgrade of the LIGO and Virgo detectors and to the research and development roadmap for the Einstein Telescope.

At IFAE, RyC fellows are appointed under a tenure-track faculty scheme and receive additional strategic institutional research funding beyond that provided by the RyC Programme, as well as a salary supplement. Subject to a positive evaluation, the successful candidate will be offered a permanent research faculty position upon successful completion of the RyC fellowship.

RyC programme details





https://www.aei.gob.es/en/convocatorias-ryc RyC application period: 10 November 2026 – 10 December 2026.

Interested candidates are encouraged to contact IFAE before the end of September 2026 to allow sufficient time for the evaluation of their potential RyC 2026 fellowship application. IFAE will act as the host institution in supporting the selected candidate’s application.

IFAE is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace and social integration of people with a disability. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates. People from groups that are typically underrepresented in the labour market in general and in Science and Engineering in particular, such as women, minorities, or people with a disability, are particularly encouraged to apply.

IFAE’s involvement in LIGO, Virgo, and the Einstein Telescope

IFAE is a member of the LIGO and Virgo Collaborations and is actively involved in the Einstein Telescope (ET) project, contributing to its design, research and development, and preparatory activities. Researchers at IFAE hold leading responsibilities within the Virgo Collaboration, particularly in the control of stray light inside the interferometer, one of the factors limiting its sensitivity. The group plays a major role in the commissioning, operation, and upgrade of the detector. Most recently,



IFAE led the construction and installation of new baffles instrumented with photosensors around the Virgo test masses to improve the understanding of stray-light-induced effects within the interferometer cavities. Looking ahead, IFAE aims to play a leading role in the design and construction of key components of the new Virgo recycling cavities. IFAE is also a major contributor to the Einstein Telescope project. It coordinates the EU Horizon INFRADEV project supporting the ET Preparatory Phase and holds leading responsibilities for the design of the detector’s stray-light control systems. In addition, IFAE is actively engaged in detector research and development, optical simulations for ET, and the design of the ET vacuum system in collaboration with CERN.

The IFAE research programme spans a broad range of topics in gravitational-wave astrophysics and cosmology using data from the LIGO–Virgo–KAGRA network. Current research includes searches for compact binary coalescences and measurements of their mass and spin distributions; investigations of primordial black holes as dark matter candidates; and searches for signatures of axion-like particles in continuous gravitational-wave signals. The group also conducts tests of gravity beyond General Relativity and pursues cosmological studies with gravitational waves, including measurements of the Hubble constant and investigations of inflation and phase transitions in the early Universe.

In parallel, the group develops novel data-analysis techniques, including deep-learning methods and advanced statistical approaches. This research naturally extends to exploring the scientific potential of next-generation gravitational-wave detectors.

Further information

For further information, please contact:

- Prof. Eugenio Coccia ([email protected] )
- Prof. Andrew Lundgren ([email protected] )
- Prof. Mario Martínez ([email protected] )

IFAE website: www.ifae.es

📌 Ramón y Cajal Fellowship Programme 2026 – Tenure-Track Position in Gravitational-Wave Physics at IFAE (Bellaterra)
🏢 IFAE
📍 Bellaterra