Opportunity at National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Incorporating Theory and Domain Knowledge into the Machine Learning of Polymeric Systems

Location

Material Measurement Laboratory, Materials Science and Engineering Division

RO# Location
50.64.21.C0473 Gaithersburg, MD

Please note: This Agency only participates in the February and August reviews.

Advisers
name email phone
Audus, Debra J debra.audus@nist.gov 301-975-4364
Description

Machine learning has dramatically transformed and continues to transform how we interact with the world; however, these advances have not fully translated to the polymers domain. The reasons for this include that in polymers, we often have small datasets (due to costly experiments), sparse datasets (as the goal is often to probe specific quantities rather than a full parametrization of an entire space), stochastic materials (as polydispersity effects can be non-trivial) and the need to characterize uncertainty (to distinguish signal from noise). However, we also benefit from the existence of underlying physics. This project seeks to incorporate physical laws and domain knowledge into machine learning to improve performance with regards to small datasets, extrapolation and explainability. Approaches include, but are not limited to, transfer learning, augmentation and residual learning.

Keywords:

polymers; machine learning; uncertainty quantification; domain knowledge

Eligibility

Citizenship:  Open to U.S. citizens

Level:  Open to Postdoctoral applicants

Stipend
Base Stipend Travel Allotment Supplementation
$74,950.00 $3,000.00