Research Associate on the SCorCH Project (2 posts)
Posted: 12th March 2021
Department of Computer Science, Parks Road, Oxford.
Research Associate on the SCorCH Project (2 posts)
Fixed term from 1 May 2021: One post for 24 months and another for 12 months, both with the possibility to start later – start date no later than 1 October 2021.
Two posts at Grade 7: Salary in the range of £32,817 – £34,804 p.a (in the range of)
We are looking for two Research Associates to conduct advanced research in applied formal verification of hardware and systems as part of the Secure Code for Capability Hardware (SCorCH) project. SCorCH is making new advances in formal analysis tools to find security issues in code running on a new generation of security-aware hardware chips. It is funded by The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council of UKRI as part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, Digital Security by Design (DSbD). The project is a collaboration by the universities of Oxford and Manchester and has two industrial partners, Arm and AWS.
The main responsibilities of the advertised posts are to contribute to the SCorCH project objectives, with an emphasis on novel, automated formal analysis methods applied to software that leverages capability hardware (the 24-month post) and novel formal verification methods and algorithms applied to the underlying capability hardware architecture (the 12-month post). This will involve identifying the most promising and valuable targets for formal analysis, selecting appropriate tooling and algorithms – making innovative, theoretically well-grounded, extensions to these as needed – devising novel analysis methods, and carrying out at-scale case studies.
You will join the internationally leading verification research group of Professor Tom Melham and will collaborate closely with other members of the SCorCH research team at Manchester. Researchers in Melham’s group benefit from the scientific insights and connections that he has gained over decades of close, impact-focused collaborations with senior engineers at leading companies in the computing and semiconductor industries.
You will hold or be close to obtaining a PhD in Computer Science (or close to completion) or a related mathematical discipline. You will have a strong publication record and familiarity with the existing literature and research in the field, as witnessed by published peer-reviewed work (according to your experience) in the area of formal analysis or related areas. You will have the ability to contribute to research on SCorCH and be willing to collaborate with others and work effectively as a member of a team. Excellent communication skills are also required, including the ability to write for publication, present research proposals and results, and represent the research group at meetings.
These positions offer a unique opportunity to do leading-edge formal analysis research aimed at real impact on cyber-security, to join a top-class team of collaborators, and to contribute to a major and prominent UK research initiative in computer science and engineering. Both roles also offer an excellent opportunity for career development that are equally well-suited to an academic or industrial research path, or to subsequent work as an applied verification engineer in industry.
The closing date for applications is 12 noon on 6 April 2021. Interviews are expected to be held week commencing 12 April 2021. In order to apply, please visit https://my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecruit/erq_jobspec_details_form.jobspec?p_id=150116
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