Job Description

Your responsibilities

Nowadays, the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based systems is experiencing a steady and rapid progress, with applications in diverse fields, from automotive to healthcare.

The usage of AI is not new in the High Energy Physics (HEP) field. For instance, neural networks and deep learning algorithms are commonly used in data analysis. At the same time, the recent advancements in AI are creating new opportunities and opening the doors to new scenarios even in areas that have not seen any strong application of AI so far. That is the case for Data Acquisition (DAQ) systems and operations of HEP experiments at large.

Several DAQ systems of the LHC experiments already implement some "intelligent service" to deal with error handling, anomaly detection and automation of well-defined actions and procedures. Those services typically rely on rule-based expert systems (ES) and complex event processing (CEP) frameworks. In general, ES and CEP-based systems are meant to work properly in a clear context, and they are not capable of easily "adapting" to mutating conditions. Instead, novel AI technologies and solutions offer much more flexibility in that respect. Additionally, AI-based technologies could be used to bring the automation of the experiment operations one step further, ensuring almost real-time analysis and decision-making capabilities.

The selected candidate will participate in a Research & Development program, whose goal is to introduce AI and machine learning models in the operations of a HEP experiment. The candidate will directly contribute to increase the experiment efficiency and improve its accuracy via enhanced automation, predictive analysis and real-time monitoring, exploiting AI-powered systems and algorithms. While DAQ systems may represent an initial target, the candidate will look for solutions flexible and generic enough to be extended to the full experiment, with the objective of going towards an autonomously running experiment.

In particular, the candidate will focus on the possibility of exploiting the power of generative AI to improve the interaction between users and the system, and on developing solutions to detect and predict system anomalies.

Your profile

Skills and/or knowledge

• Experience with software development tools in a Linux environment. 
• Experience with AI models and algorithms and their applications to data science.
• Fluent in English, the ability to work in French would be an advantage.

Eligibility criteria:

• You are a national of a CERN Member or Associate Member State.
• By the application deadline, you have a maximum of two years of professional experience since graduation in Software engineering (or a related field) and your highest educational qualification is either a Bachelor's or Master's degree.
• You have never had a CERN fellow or graduate contract before.
• Applicants without University degree are not eligible.
• Applicants with a PhD are not eligible.

Additional Information

Job closing date: August 19 at 23:59 hrs CEST.

Job reference: EP-ADT-DQ-2024-134-GRAE

Contract duration: 24 months, with a possible extension up to 36 months maximum.

Target start date: 01-October-2024

This position requires:

• Work in Radiation Areas.
• Interventions in underground installations.
• Stand-by duty, when required by the needs of the Organization.
• Work during nights, Sundays and official holidays, when required by the needs of the Organization.

What we offer

• A monthly stipend ranging between 5134 and 5647 Swiss Francs (net of tax).
• Coverage by CERN's comprehensive health scheme (for yourself, your spouse and children), and membership of the CERN Pension Fund.
• Depending on your individual circumstances: installation grant; family, child and infant allowances; payment of travel expenses at the beginning and end of contract.
• 30 days of paid leave per year.
• On-the-job and formal training at CERN as well as in-house language courses for English and/or French.

About us

At CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, physicists and engineers are probing the fundamental structure of the universe. Using the world's largest and most complex scientific instruments, they study the basic constituents of matter - fundamental particles that are made to collide together at close to the speed of light. The process gives physicists clues about how particles interact, and provides insights into the fundamental laws of nature. Find out more on http://home.cern.

Diversity has been an integral part of CERN's mission since its foundation and is an established value of the Organization. Employing a diverse workforce is central to our success.