Research Technician

What You Will Do

This position will be filled at either the Research Technician 3 or 4 level, depending on the skills of the selected candidate. Additional job responsibilities (outlined below) will be assigned if the candidate is hired at the higher level.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is looking for highly motivated, customer service focused technicians to join the Non-Destructive Assay‑Vault Operations. Our group performs various types of non‑destructive assay (NDA) testing in both laboratory and in‑situ settings. NDA‑VO is also responsible for safe and compliant long‑term storage of nuclear material.

As a Research Technician, you will be responsible for handling nuclear material in support of various missions. While some work does require glovebox qualifications, most of our scope does not occur inside glove boxes. This position requires knowledge and experience using Conduct of Operations, radiological safety, nuclear criticality safety, material control and accountability, and environmental compliance requirements.

Research Tec 3 ($64,700 - $101,400)

• Radiological safety, inventory systems, hand tools, PPE usage.
• Willingness to perform hands‑on work with appropriate PPE, perform occasional respirator work, understand, and follow procedures.
• Attendance and punctuality are key to this role.
• Ability to complete and maintain training, including ability to pass computer and oral examinations.
• Understand and adhere to all Laboratory and industry regulatory guidance.
• Experience working with applications such as the Microsoft Office Suite and SharePoint.
• Put safety and security at the forefront of every task, maintain compliance with safety and security requirements.
• Promote a mutually respectful work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment.
• Attention to detail in recording measurement results in logbooks and databases.
• Compliantly handle and transport nuclear material.
• Solid understanding of technical concepts, including radiological materials handling, electronic imaging, and materials characterization and testing.
• Ability to work effectively and professionally in a high‑performance team environment while completing requests from multiple organizations.
• Possess high attention to detail including strong organizational skills, analytical thinking, observation skills and problem‑solving skills.
• Ability to perform non‑destructive measurements on nuclear material and analyze data.
• Ability to learn and understand various criticality safety postings and handle nuclear material in accordance with postings.

Research Tec 4 ($71,200 - $112,900)

• Operation, calibration and troubleshooting of in‑line assay instrumentation, including balances, solution assay instruments, and thermal neutron counters; operation and calibration of neutron counters, gamma isotopic and calorimetry instruments; material moves with compliant long‑term vault storage and retrieval.
• Write and maintain records, write concise progress reports, and interact frequently with processing organizations.
• Safely handle radioactive materials and chemicals in glove boxes and or in a laboratory setting.
• Follow detailed Operating Procedures and formality of operations for conducting work in a Nuclear Facility.
• Protect nuclear materials and classified information in a secure environment.
• Perform transactions on the LANMAS computer system and conduct activities in accordance with environmental regulations.
• Provide general operational support, including nuclear criticality safety, material control and accountability, glovebox maintenance, radiological protection and waste minimization and management.
• Provide training and oversight for new technicians.

Research Tech 3:

• Knowledge and or experience working in hazardous environments.
• Ability to work effectively, conscientiously, and professionally in a high-performance team environment that exhibits collaborative behavior.
• Experience interacting and communicating both written and orally.
• Ability to proactively work to assist others in achieving the organizations objectives.
• Knowledge and experience in required safety practices for work assignments.
• Ability to follow safeguards…