PostDoc/Senior Researcher (f/m/x)

FIZ Karlsruhe – Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure is one of the leading provider of scientific information and services and a member of the Leibniz Association. Our core tasks are the professional provision of research and patent information to science and industry as well as the development of innovative information infrastructures, e.g. with a focus on research data management, knowledge graphs and digital platforms. For this purpose, we conduct in-house research, cooperate with renowned universities and research associations and maintain an international network. FIZ Karlsruhe is a GmbH (a limited liability company) with a non-profit character and one of the largest non-university institutions of its kind in Germany.

We are looking for a PostDoc/Senior Researcher (f/m/x) for the Information Service Engineering department (ISE) in Karlsruhe starting October 1, 2025. The ISE department, led by Prof. Dr. Harald Sack, investigates models and methods for efficient semantic indexing, aggregation, linking and retrieval of comprehensive heterogeneous and distributed data sources. To this end, both statistical and linguistic analysis methods (NLP) as well as machine learning in combination with symbolic knowledge representation are applied (Neurosymbolic AI).

The position is related to the BMBF project Plattform MaterialDigital III (PMD III, 2025-2028) in the department of Knowledge Graphs (ISE-KG) focused on but not limited to Ontological Engineering tasks in the application domain of materials science engineering. This is an excellent opportunity for an individual pursuing a successful scientific career in knowledge-driven Artificial Intelligence, with a strong interest in ontologies and knowledge graphs.

Job Description:

• Conducting innovative research on ontologies, ontology design, and ontological engineering
  related technologies in the application domain of material science engineering with
  participation in scientific publications and other academic activities.
• Taking on PMD III project work in coordination with the relevant supervisor or project
  coordinator, project-related reporting and documentation, representing the interests of ISE-KG
  in project meetings.
• Collaborating on the preparation of project- or research-related third-party funding applications
  from national, European and/or international funding programmes.
• The co-supervision of master, bachelor theses, and PhD students in coordination with Prof. Dr.
  Harald Sack.

Qualifications and Skills:

• A very good PhD degree in computer science or a comparable discipline.
• Very good software engineering skills.
• Excellent written and spoken English, German language skills are an advantage but are not
  mandatory.
• Motivation and excitement in dealing with challenging research problems and in developing
  convincing solutions as a team.
• Publications of research results in renowned international, peer-reviewed journals and
  conferences.
• Experience in the acquisition of funding from national, European and/or international funding
  agencies is highly beneficial, but not mandatory.

Optimally, you have expertise in one or more of the following research areas:

• Ontologies, Ontology Design and Ontological Engineering
• Knowledge Graphs and Semantic Web technologies

The candidate should be highly self-motivated, interested in tackling challenging research problems, have excellent organizational skills, be open minded, and have scientific leadership potential.

Why FIZ Karlsruhe:

• Promoting the scientific development of young researchers is an important goal of FIZ Karlsruhe. Candidates for habilitation will be supervised by Prof. Dr. Harald Sack (FIZ Karlsruhe & KIT Karlsruhe).
• With us, you will get the chance to work in a diverse team with colleagues that are more than
  happy to welcome new team members of all backgrounds, genders and ages.
• Because our team is not only based at FIZ Karlsruhe, but also at KIT, we offer you the opportunity to gain experience in teaching and to engage in discourse with students at KIT, either in person or through our online formats.
• In addition, we offer a productive and a constantly developing research and working environment and actively support you in your further scientific endeavors.
• Flexible working time models and mobile working up to 80 per cent
• Remuneration according to the German Collective Agreement for the Public Sector (TVöD VKA) including a company pension plan with VBL
• A family friendly work environment certified by audit berufundfamilie
• Company bike leasing option and €25 employer subsidy for the Deutschland-Ticket

The employment relationship is initially limited to the duration of the project until 30 September 2028. The position is full-time with the option of part-time employment. Applications from severely handicapped persons will be considered with preference, provided they are equally qualified. Information on data protection for job advertisements can be found here.

If you have any technical questions, please contact harald.sack [at] fiz-karlsruhe.de (Prof. Dr. Harald Sack). Questions regarding the application process should be directed to bewerbung [at] fiz-karlsruhe.de (bewerbung[at]fiz-karlsruhe[dot]de).

Please send your complete application documents by e-mail, quoting the reference number 
09/2025, to bewerbung [at] fiz-karlsruhe.de (bewerbung[at]fiz-karlsruhe[dot]de). Application period until 22 August 2025.

1) detailed curriculum vitae 
2) copies of degree certificates & transcripts
3) publication record or writing samples from your thesis
4) letters of recommendation (preferably at least two)
5) a letter of motivation covering your research goals