PhD Student in Modeling Organic Carbon Sequestration in Marine Sediments

The Environmental Physics Group at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) seeks a highly motivated Ph.D. student to investigate the global organic carbon budget in marine sediments and the effects of anthropogenic and climatic perturbations.

Marine sediments play a critical role in the global carbon cycle, serving as the ultimate sink for carbon by sequestering it in the form of organic carbon (OC) for geological timescales. However, the magnitude of OC buried in marine sediments remains uncertain, and its spatial distribution is still poorly understood.

This project aims to understand and quantify the global organic carbon budget in marine sediments and assess the influence of climatic perturbations. It utilizes spatial machine learning models to determine the carbon budget which also serves to identify the environmental conditions that control the accumulation and remineralization of OC. The PhD project will focus on the Arctic, a region that is already affected by climate change which could have affected the accumulation of OC in the seafloor. By looking at the relatioships between changing climatic conditions and the OC in marine sediments, this project aims to predict future trends in the global carbon budget under the influence of expansive and intensifying climatic perturbations.

As a successful candidate, you will compile and analyze organic carbon and its isotopic composition in specific sites. You will disentangle the environmental processes that drive the accumulation and remineralization of organic carbon in the Arctic using statistical methods. Additionally, you will quantify the contribution of different sources of organic carbon in Arctic sediments and assess how changing environmental conditions are affecting organic carbon storage in coastal environments. Moreover, you will predict future changes in the sedimentary organic carbon budget due to intensifying climate change in the Arctic.

You will be working in the Environmental Physics Group, an interdisciplinary research group that focuses on studying the ocean, its physics, biogeochemistry, and ecology and their interactions with climate using different modelling techniques, led by Prof. Dr. Nicolas Gruber.

In addition, you will conduct a short research stay at the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) in Bremerhaven, Germany, with our collaborator, Dr. Gesine Mollenhauer, which will allow you to work with other researchers focused on understanding the carbon cycle in the Arctic.

• A Master's degree in a relevant field (e.g., oceanography, marine science, biogeochemistry, climate science, environmental science, or a related discipline).
• A strong interest in laboratory analyses, modeling, and data analysis.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to effectively engage with diverse stakeholders and team members.
• Demonstrated leadership qualities, including adaptability, problem-solving, and a proactive approach to challenges.
• Ability to work in multidisciplinary teams, fostering an inclusive environment that values diverse perspectives and collaboration.
• Strong interpersonal skills, with a focus on building and maintaining professional relationships.
• Proficiency in a higher programming language (e.g., Matlab, Python).

• Training opportunities with leading experts in modelling, biogeochemical cycles, and ocean processes.
• Support programmes and networking opportunities such as assisting at international conferences.
• An interdisciplinary research group with different interests on processes occurring in the ocean.
• A supportive working environment that values the well-being of the whole group.
• Flexible working hours and possibility of working from home, promoting a healthy work-life balance.