Open positions

The Faculty of Science at Tübingen University invites applications for a

W3-Professorship in Machine Learning in Physics

at the Department of Physics

starting as soon as possible.

The professorship is embedded within the Excellence Cluster "Machine Learning: New Perspectives for Science", which is now entering its second funding phase. The successful candidate is expected to have an established research profile in a core area of physics, as well as a strong track record in research questions related to machine learning and/or artificial intelligence.

Core areas of physics include the structure of condensed matter (description of many-body systems), quantum physics (characterization of quantum states in many-body systems), and theoretical particle physics. In all of these areas, methodological development through machine learning is taking place — for example, in predicting the evolution of complex molecular systems over long timescales, investigating quantum mechanical effects in information processing within (quantum) neural networks, or in elementary particle physics at high-energy accelerators.

The aim of the professorship is to closely integrate research at one of the Department of Physics’ research centers (BioNanoPhysics Center, Center for Quantum Science, or Kepler Center) with ongoing machine learning research activities in Tübingen. The appointee is expected to be actively involved in the Department of Physics and in the Excellence Cluster, inter alia by pursuing collaborative research projects at the interface of machine learning and physics, as well as by committing to organizational and implementation-related tasks within the Excellence Cluster. Further information about the Excellence Cluster can be found at: http://www.ml-in-science.uni-tuebingen.de/

In terms of teaching, the professorship is expected to offer courses within the Department of Physics and also contribute to the international Master's program “Machine Learning” offered by the Department of Computer Science.

Required qualifications include a PhD or equivalent degree as well as postdoctoral qualifications and teaching experience equivalent to the requirements of a full professorship. 

The University of Tübingen is committed to equity and diversity and actively promotes equal opportunities. Female academics, in particular, are explicitly invited to apply, as are applicants from outside Germany. Applications from equally qualified candidates with disabilities will be given preference.

General information on professorships, hiring processes, and the German academic system can be found here: https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/213700 

Please submit your full application through the application site of the University of Tübingen at https://berufungen.uni-tuebingen.de by 15 February 2026. Questions concerning the call for applications and the application portal can be directed to the Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Tübingen, Professor Dr. Thilo Stehle (careerspam prevention@mnf.uni-tuebingen.de).

Are you excited about the possibility to explore ethical, philosophical, legal, epistemic or social implications of using machine learning in different scientific disciplines? Join us as

Postdoctoral Researcher

in anthropology, law, science and technology studies, ethics, or philosophy

for the Norms & Practices Lab (m/w/d; E13 TV-L, 100%)

in the Excellence Cluster “Machine Learning - New Perspectives for Science”

The Cluster of Excellence "Machine Learning - New Perspectives for Science" at the University of Tübingen offers several postdoc positions in our Norms & Practices Lab to be filled as soon as possible. The positions will be filled by highly qualified researchers who investigate machine learning from ethical, philosophical, anthropological or legal perspectives.

The aim of the Norms & Practices Lab of the Cluster of Excellence is to investigate from an interdisciplinary perspective how the advent of transformative machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies changes the norms and practices of science, drawing on a rich set of methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks from philosophy, digital anthropology, science and technology studies, and law. The lab places a particular emphasis on creating synergies between these disciplinary approaches and connecting them with computer science perspectives and insights. Research could for example investigate the transformation of epistemic norms and practices in scientific domains, study data journeys from the perspective of legal norms and scientific practices, or explore interdisciplinary perspectives on quantitative evaluation metrics such as algorithmic fairness paradigms. 

Applicants should hold a PhD in philosophy, law, cultural anthropology, or (qualitative) social science. The positions are fixed-term (6 years with an interim evaluation after 3 years), with a salary according to the German public sector (100%, E13 TV-L). 

Tübingen is a leading place for research in machine learning. The Research Fellows will be embedded in the lively and interactive environment of the Cluster of Excellence “Machine Learning: New Perspectives for Science” at the University of Tübingen (www.ml-in-science.uni-tuebingen.de). Also on our campus are the Tübingen AI Center, the Max Planck Institute for intelligent Systems, and the Ellis Institute.

Please send the usual documents (cover letter, curriculum vitae, copies of certificates, list of publications, 2-3 names of referees) together with a 1 page pitch on a planned research project outlining research objectives and how you want to achieve them. Please submit all documents as a single PDF (not exceeding 5 MB) to the Central Office of the Cluster of Excellence (ml-in-sciencespam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de) by November 30, 2025. Questions can also be directed to the Central Office. 

The University aims to increase the proportion of women in research and therefore urges suitably qualified women scientists to apply. Qualified international researchers are expressly invited to apply. Disabled persons with equal aptitude will be given preferential consideration. Staffing will be conducted by the central administration of the University of Tübingen.

Our group builds artificial intelligence systems for discovering new concepts, experiments and ideas in physics. To accelerate this effort, we need your help! We have

several fully-funded open PhD and Post-Doc positions (m/f/d)

at the University of Tübingen, one of Europe’s most vibrant hub for artificial intelligence research. 

A list of concrete potential projects:

• Development of modern auto-differentiation (JAX-based) physics simulators for the discovery of new physics experiments (example here)
• AI-driven discovery of hardware for some of the most thought after quantum information technology, quantum-enhanced microscopes and telescopes (example here), and AI-driven discovery of new physics experiments to test quantum-gravity and observe gravitational waves (examples here and here)
• Developing and testing state-of-the-art AI-driven exploration, optimization, and search algorithms in extremely complex and enormously large spaces motivated by physics and chemistry
• Agentic frameworks (e.g. LLMs with tool-use) for closed-loop idea generation for physics (example here)

Other projects are certainly possible too. In general, we believe that building autonomous scientific systems is not just a technical question, but requires understanding and insights from the philosophy of science – see e.g. here.

If you are excited to use artificial intelligence techniques for scientific discoveries in physics, send us your application, including a CV, a short motivation letter, the names & contact of two potential references to mario.krennspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de. The opening will remain valid until 28.10.2025 (unless filled before).

PhD positions will be for a duration of 3 years, post-doc positions will be for 2 years.

Requirements: Master/Bachelor in Physics, Computer Science or related fields (for PhD); Doctorate in Physics, Computer Science or related fields (for Post-Docs).

The positions are funded via the Cluster of Excellence (Machine Learning for Science), the ERC Starting Grant ArtDisQ and the University of Tübingen. Salary will be determined according to the German collective wage agreement in public service (E 13 TV-L). The University aims to increase the proportion of women in research and teaching and therefore urges suitable qualified women scientists to apply. Qualified international researchers are expressly invited to apply. Disabled candidates will be given preference over other equally qualified applicants. The university is committed to equal opportunities and diversity. It therefore takes individual situations into account and asks for relevant information. The employment will be handled by the central administration of the University of Tübingen.

View this position as PDF

The Schreiber Group at the University of Tübingen works on the physics of molecular and biological materials using X-ray and neutron scattering. A specialised sub-group is dedicated machine learning based data analysis of scattering and diffraction data. Currently we have several

PhD positions (m/f/d)

available. Candidates with experience or interest in neural networks and machine learning strategies to analyse scattering are especially encouraged to apply.

You should have good communication skills, attention to detail, and flexibility to work both independently as well as in a team. You should hold either a diploma/master degree in physics, physical chemistry, material science or have a background in computer science.

You will be part of challenging interdisciplinary projects that are integrated into major national and European research consortia such as the DAPHNE (DAta for PHoton and Neutron Experiments) NFDI consortium. We offer well-equipped laboratories, a highly collaborative international environment and affiliation with the Cluster of Excellence "Machine Learning: New Perspectives for Science" funded by the DFG and hosted at the University Tübingen. You will receive excellent training and for all our projects we offer the opportunity to perform research at international large-scale facilities (such as synchrotrons and neutron sources).  Details on our research as well as publications and background information can be found at http://www.soft-matter.uni-tuebingen.de/machine_learning_XRR.html and http://www.soft-matter.uni-tuebingen.de/machine_learning_GIWAXS.html

The University of Tübingen has ~ 28,000 students and more than 500 years of academic tradition. It has national excellence status as is ranked in the top 100 universities worldwide. You will benefit from a variety of training opportunities and language courses as well as the university’s graduate academy. See also https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/excellence-strategy.

Applications should include a cover letter describing research interests, achievements, motivation and capabilities; curriculum vitae; academic certificates; names and email addresses of two professional references (e.g., current or previous research advisors). The opening will remain valid until the position is filled.

The positions are available immediately. Salary will be determined according to the German collective wage agreement in public service. Please send your application within one PDF file to softmatterspam prevention@ifap.uni-tuebingen.de

The University aims to increase the proportion of women in research and teaching and therefore urges suitable qualified women scientists to apply. Qualified international researchers are expressly invited to apply. Severely disabled persons with equal aptitude will be given preferential consideration.