The Institut de Física d'Altes Energies (IFAE) in Barcelona, a Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence, invites expressions of interest from candidates wishing to apply to the Ramón y Cajal (RyC) 2026 Programme in the field of Gravitational-Wave (GW) Physics.
The RyC Programme aims to attract outstanding postdoctoral researchers to the Spanish science, technology, and innovation system through five-year contracts. In the 2026 call, RyC fellows will receive the resources needed to lead their own research programmes, thereby establishing a clear pathway towards permanent integration into the Spanish research system. Demonstrated potential to secure competitive research funding, particularly through European Research Council (ERC) grants, is considered an important asset for successful RyC applicants.
IFAE is seeking candidates with a demonstrated track record of research excellence and leadership in ground-based interferometric gravitational-wave detector technology. The successful candidate is expected to play a leading role in defining and developing IFAE’s experimental programme, contributing to the operation and upgrade of the LIGO and Virgo detectors and to the research and development roadmap for the Einstein Telescope.
At IFAE, RyC fellows are appointed under a tenure-track faculty scheme and receive additional strategic institutional research funding beyond that provided by the RyC Programme, as well as a salary supplement. Subject to a positive evaluation, the successful candidate will be offered a permanent research faculty position upon successful completion of the RyC fellowship.
RyC programme details
https://www.aei.gob.es/en/convocatorias-ryc
RyC application period: 10 November 2026 – 10 December 2026.
Interested candidates are encouraged to contact IFAE before the end of September 2026 to allow sufficient time for the evaluation of their potential RyC 2026 fellowship application. IFAE will act as the host institution in supporting the selected candidate’s application.
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