Luna Innovations is seeking a creative Associate Scientist to direct and conduct research focused on the discovery and development of existing and new materials technology towards commercial applications. Current areas of development in the Materials Research Group include corrosion resistant and multifunctional protective barrier coatings, polymeric sealants, and electromagnetic signature control materials. It is desired that the candidate will have a background in one or more of these areas and will develop new skills by contributing to technology development, new idea generation, and experimental design / execution. The candidate will perform general technical assistance on a variety of currently funded materials programs and will be expected to conduct exploratory research and development efforts to help establish additional materials research and development (R&D) efforts. The ideal candidate will also contribute to program management, new idea generation, and experimental design / execution.

Duties and Major Responsibilities:

• Work with Principal Investigators to manage technical projects including experimental design, problem solving, data interpretation, report writing, and proposal preparation.
• Support early product development through literature reviews, sourcing of equipment, components and supplies, and assemble systems and prototypes for ongoing research
• Identify new materials-based technologies to meet significant customer needs.
• Collaborate with the internal and external scientific community to maintain a state-of-the-art knowledge to successfully conduct experiments and projects.
• Assist the transition of new technologies into product concepts, prototype design, and commercialization.
• Communicate well with customers and colleagues through reports, presentations, emails, and phone calls.

Minimum Qualifications

• Functions well in a fast-paced and team oriented R&D environment
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Strong commitment to quality and attention to detail
• Excellent communication, technical writing, analytical, and interpersonal skills
• Desire and ability to understand the technical approach within the context of the application
• Bachelor's degree with 5+ years' experience or Master's degree with 3+ years' experience in Chemistry, Materials Science Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• Experience in laboratory research
• Ability to support several disparate programs in parallel.

Due to government contracting regulations, U.S. Citizenship is a firm requirement.

Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by law.