Postdoctoral position in observational astrophysics at CNRS

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et planétologie Research Field Astronomy Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 30 Nov 2026
- 23:59 (UTC) Country France Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Mar 2027 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

We invite applications for a 2+1yr postdoctoral position in stellar formation and exoplanet research at the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie (IRAP) located in Toulouse, France, within the SPIRou science consortium locally coordinated by Drs JF Donati and C Moutou.

This project aims at modeling the magnetic topologies and accretion processes of pre-main sequence low-mass (T Tauri) stars, monitored with the SPIRou near-infrared spectropolarimeter at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) since 2019 in the framework of the SPIRou Large Programs. The goal is to analyze existing and future SPIRou data for a number of T Tauri stars of various masses, ages and accretion rates, to (i) model the spectropolarimetric data with ZDI, reconstruct the evolving stellar magnetic topologies and characterize the magnetospheric accretion processes taking place between the inner accretion disk and the stellar surface, and (ii) study the radial velocity curves and filter out activity to unveil and characterize potential close-in massive planets.
Forthcoming observations will also include, in addition to SPIRou near-infrared spectra, optical spectra simultaneously collected with the ESPaDOnS spectropolarimeter at CFHT, further broadening the panel of available diagnostics for both projects. The work will take place at IRAP with Drs JF Donati and C Moutou, starting Q4 2026 (preferably) or Q1 2027.

In addition to a PhD in astrophysics, the candidates must have a solid background in stellar spectropolarimetry and / or velocimetry to efficiently analyze spectra collected with SPIRou and ESPaDOnS.

Further information: 2-year contract, renewable for 1 year

The start date is scheduled for 1 March 2027 and may be adjusted by a few months depending on the availability of the successful candidate.