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Assistant Beamline Scientist - In Situ Nanoprobe
Posted Jul 30, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
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Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
Tell me about a time you helped commission or start up a complex instrument.
What they are checking: Whether they can handle the problem solving and patience that commissioning a new beamline requires.
Describe how you have worked with engineers and other groups to develop new instrumentation.
What they are checking: Whether they collaborate well with technical teams to build methods together.
Tell me about a conference talk or paper where you presented your findings. What was the main takeaway?
What they are checking: Whether they can communicate research clearly to the wider scientific community.
What would you do
A battery or catalyst user wants to watch a reaction in real time. How would you design the experiment with them?
What they are checking: Whether they can turn a user's scientific question into a practical operando setup.
A sample environment fails in the middle of a user's beamtime. What do you do?
What they are checking: Whether they can recover quickly, keep safety first and make the most of the remaining time.
What scientific areas would you most want to support with the ISN, such as energy, life or quantum science, and why?
What they are checking: Whether their interests line up with the research areas the Microscopy Group pursues.
About the work
What makes in situ and operando experiments at a nanoprobe harder than static measurements, and how do you plan for that?
What they are checking: Whether they understand sample environments, beam damage and time constraints for studies under real conditions.
How would you combine x-ray fluorescence, diffraction and imaging at the ISN to study one sample at several length scales?
What they are checking: Whether they can use the multi-scale and multi-modal capabilities that define this instrument.
How do you manage beam damage when a sample must be measured repeatedly over a long experiment?
What they are checking: Whether they think about dose and its effect on results, which matters more with the brighter upgraded source.
How do you analyze large multi-modal datasets so users leave with real scientific insight, not just raw files?
What they are checking: Whether they help users get from data to understanding, which the posting lists as a duty.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Argonne National Laboratory.