IUCAA Post-Doctoral Fellow NINJA Simulations 2026

IUCAA Post-Doctoral Fellow Recruitment 2026: Overview

Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune is looking for a Post-Doctoral Fellow for its project on forming galaxies in the first few hundred million years, built around the institute's own NINJA simulations. This is a project post-doctoral position in IUCAA's Post-Doctoral Programme for 2026-27, so it is tied to one research project rather than being an open fellowship. The project is guided by Prof. R. Srianand.

Why the project matters: In the standard Lambda CDM model, galaxies grow inside collapsed dark matter haloes. New JWST observations now put tight limits on how many galaxies exist per unit volume, how much stellar mass they hold and how common supermassive black holes are in the early universe. NINJA is a set of large-scale hydrodynamical structure-formation simulations run at IUCAA to test these findings, and the team has already published papers on the simulation itself, on damping-wing signals and on gravitational waves from binary black holes.

If you have finished your PhD, or submitted your thesis, in galaxy formation, ISM or CGM physics and you like working with large simulations or observational data, this position is a strong fit for you.

Service Conditions and Caveats

• Tenure: The position runs for 2 years, extendable by 1 more year, and all IUCAA norms apply.
• Joining: Because this is a project position, IUCAA expects the selected fellow to join on or before January 2027.
• Project fit statement: You must include a short statement explaining why you suit this specific project; a general research statement is not enough.
• Own fellowship holders: If you already hold an external fellowship such as ANRF-NPDF, Ramanujan or INSPIRE Faculty, IUCAA runs a separate Non-IUCAA Funded track on the same form.

Application Submission Notes

You apply through IUCAA's online Post-Doctoral application form for 2026-27. Choose "Project Post-Doctoral Position" and then tick the NINJA simulations project led by Prof. R. Srianand. The form also asks for your JEST or CSIR-UGC NET details.

When you submit, IUCAA emails your referees a login to upload confidential reports, and those reports have their own deadline a few days after yours. Tell your referees in advance and check with them regularly.

Note: The form page still shows a banner saying the 2026-27 cycle is closed, while its instructions list an extended last date. If the form does not accept your application, write to the Coordinator, Core Academic Programmes at aocp@iucaa.in. For questions about the research itself, contact Prof. Srianand (anand [AT] iucaa.in).

• Work with the NINJA large-scale hydrodynamical structure-formation simulations at IUCAA
• Study how galaxies formed in the first few hundred million years of the universe
• Investigate IGM and CGM physics in the very early universe using simulation outputs
• Compare simulation results with JWST limits on galaxy numbers, stellar mass and supermassive black hole density
• Handle large observational or simulation datasets with strong computing skills