LEDIG STILLING VED UIT NORGES ARKTISKE UNIVERSITET

Two PhD Fellows in Optical Nanoscopy, Bio-imaging and Nanotechnology

Deadline: 14.07.2021

UiT The Arctic University of Norway

UiT is a multi-campus research university in Norway and the northernmost university of the world. Our central location in the High North, our broad and diverse research and study portfolio, and our interdisciplinary qualities make us uniquely suited to meet the challenges of the future. At UiT you can explore global issues from a close-up perspective.


Credibility, academic freedom, closeness, creativity and commitment shall be hallmarks of the relationship between our employees, between our employees and our students and between UiT and our partners.

Faculty of Science and Technology

The positions

1-2 PhD positions are available for the UiT Thematic Project entitled “Nanoscopy Applied to Selective Autophagy Research”, NASAR. These PhD positions will be supervised by Professor Balpreet Singh Ahluwalia. The candidate will be hosted within the Nanoscopy sub-group in the Ultrasound, Microwaves and Optics Group at the Department of Physics and Technology. In the NASAR project there will be a close cooperation between the Nanoscopy Group and Autophagy Research Group, led by Professor Terje Johansen.

The positions are for a period of four years. The nominal length of the PhD programme is three years. The fourth year is distributed as 25 % each year and will consist of teaching and related duties. The objective of the position is to complete research training to the level of a doctoral degree. Admission to the PhD programme is a prerequisite for employment, and the programme period starts on commencement of the position.

The workplace is at UiT in Tromsø. You must be able to start in the position in Tromsø within a reasonable time after receiving the offer.

PhD Position 1: Quantitative phase microscopy

The focus of this PhD position is on quantitative phase microscopy.

The task includes following:

  • Development: Develop different variants of quantitative phase microscopy/quantitative phase tomography set-ups. Build high-resolution, high-speed and highly sensitive phase microscopy/tomography set-ups, exploiting concepts such as use of partially incoherent light source, common-path/in-line holography geometries, use of NIR wavelengths etc.
  • Computational: Optimize the reconstruction algorithms, defocusing/optical aberration removal, single-shot phase recovery algorithms, etc will be implemented.
  • Application: Apply the newly build microscopy and tomography set-ups for bio-imaging applications in close co-operation with collaborators.
  • The candidate will be a part of large and multi-disciplinary project umbrella, NASAR. It is anticipated that the candidate has good communication skills, can work efficiently both independently and with group members from different disciplines.
  • The candidate should be open for learning new cross-disciplinary skills and disseminate the work through scientific journal publications, conference participation and other disseminations channels, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, ResearchGate, YouTube, etc.

PhD Position 2: Bio-imaging or integrated optics and nanotechnology

The focus of this PhD position will be on one of these two research directions. Possible tasks for the respective research directions are outlined below:

PhD position 2A - Bio-imaging: high-resolution optical microscopy of biological samples

  • Candidate in close co-operation with bio-collaborators will conduct bio-imaging experiments using different advanced optical microscopy set-ups.
  • Perform correlative light-light and light-electron microscopy experiments on biological samples. Apply both fluorescence-based methods such as structured illumination microscopy (SIM), single molecule localization microscopy, deconvolution microscopy, TIRF; and label-free methods such as quantitative phase microscopy and NanoLive.
  • Apply advance image segmentation algorithms, machine learning, artificial intelligence-based segmentation for classification of the sub-cellular organelles and vesicles.
  • The candidate will be a part of large and multi-disciplinary project umbrella, NASAR. It is anticipated that the candidate has good communication skills, can work efficiently both independently and with group members from different disciplines.
  • The candidate should be open for learning new cross-disciplinary skills and disseminate the work through scientific journal publications, conference participation and other disseminations channels, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, ResearchGate, YouTube, etc.

PhD position 2B: Integrated optics and photonic chip-based super-resolution optical microscopy

  • Develop low-loss optical waveguide platform for visible spectrum. Different possible routes include a) development of high-refractive index waveguide materials such as titanium dioxide, tantalum pentoxide, etc and/or b) development of low-refractive index waveguide platform using polymer or femto-second laser writing.
  • At UiT, there are different variants of on-chip nanoscopy set-up. Candidate will further develop photonic chip-based nanoscopy. Possible research routes are optimization of grating couplers, tapers, and 3D-light beam shaping using photonic-chip, development of on-chip integrated phase and amplitude modulator.
  • Candidate should be willingly to travel within Norway or internationally to access the cleanroom fabrication facilities. Part of the fabrication can be done in-house, the department is likely to have its own cleanroom fabrication facilities by 2022, however delay could be anticipated.
  • The candidate will be a part of large and multi-disciplinary project umbrella, NASAR. It is anticipated that the candidate has good communication skills, can work efficiently both independently and with group members from different disciplines.
  • The candidate should be open for learning new cross-disciplinary skills and disseminate the work through scientific journal publications, conference participation and other disseminations channels, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, ResearchGate, YouTube, etc.

Contact

For further information about the position, please contact:

Qualifications

The candidate must have a Master’s degree with a background in physics, engineering, biotechnology, or nanotechnology, and has research interest/background in one of these three directions:

  • optics/photonics
  • bio-imaging
  • nanotechnology

For PhD position 1 the candidate should have background on microscopy and exposure on quantitative phase microscopy is beneficial. It is desirable that candidate has exposures to laser alignment, optical instrumentation, and MATLAB programming,

For PhD position 2A the candidate should have background in advanced optical microscopy, bio-imaging, basic cell handling, experience with fluorescence labelling of cells.

For PhD position 2B the candidate should have background in integrated photonics, optical waveguides and fabrication. Prior experience with COMSOL, Finwave/BeamProp and cleanroom exposure are beneficial but not mandatory.

Applicants must document fluency in English. Experience working in an international and cross-disciplinary environment is beneficial, albeit not mandatory.

In the assessment, the emphasis is on the applicant's potential to complete a research education based on the master's thesis or equivalent, and any other scientific work. In addition, other experience of significance for the completion of the doctoral programme may be given consideration.

We will also emphasize motivation and personal suitability for the position.

As many as possible should have the opportunity to undertake organized research training. If you already hold a PhD or have equivalent competence, we will not appoint you to this position.

Admission to the PhD programme

For employment in the PhD position, you must be qualified for admission to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Science and Technology and participate in organized doctoral studies within the employment period.

Admission normally requires:

  • A bachelor's degree of 180 ECTS and a master's degree of 120 ECTS, or an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS.
  • A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 30 ECTS for a master's degree of 120 ECTS.
  • A master's thesis with a scope corresponding to at least 20 ECTS for an integrated master's degree of 300 ECTS.

To gain admission to the programme, the applicant must have a grade point average of C or better for the master’s degree and for relevant subjects of the bachelor’s degree. A more detailed description of admission requirements can be found here.

Applicants with a foreign education will be subjected to an evaluation of whether the educational background is equal to Norwegian higher education, following national guidelines from NOKUT.

If you are employed in the position, you will be provisionally admitted to the PhD programme. Application for final admission must be submitted no later than two months after taking up the position.

Inclusion and diversity

UiT The Arctic University of Norway is working actively to promote equality, gender balance and diversity among employees and students, and to create an inclusive and safe working environment. We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength and we want employees with different competencies, professional experience, life experience and perspectives.

If you have a disability, a gap in your CV or immigrant background, we encourage you to tick the box for this in your application. If there are qualified applicants, we invite at least one in each group for an interview. If you get the job, we will adapt the working conditions if you need it. Apart from selecting the right candidates, we will only use the information for anonymous statistics.

We offer

  • Involvement in an interesting research project
  • A good academic environment with dedicated colleagues 
  • Flexible working hours and a state collective pay agreement 
  • Pension scheme through the state pension fund 
  • More practical information for working and living in Norway can be found here: https://uit.no/staffmobility

Application 

Your application must include:

  • Cover letter explaining your motivation and research interests
  • CV
  • Diploma for bachelor's and master's degree
  • Transcript of grades/academic record for bachelor's and master's degree
  • Explanation of the grading system for foreign education (Diploma Supplement if available)
  • Documentation of English proficiency
  • References with contact information
  • Master’s thesis, and any other academic works

Qualification with a master’s degree is required before commencement in the position. If you are near completion of your master’s degree, you may still apply and submit a draft version of the thesis and a statement from your supervisor or institution indicating when the degree will be obtained. You must document completion of your degree before commencement in the position. You must still submit your transcripts for the master’s degree with your application.

All documentation to be considered must be in a Scandinavian language or English. Diplomas and transcripts must also be submitted in the original language, if not in English or Scandinavian. We only accept applications and documentation sent via Jobbnorge within the application deadline.

General information

The appointment is made in accordance with State regulations and guidelines at UiT. At our website, you will find more information for applicants.

A shorter period of appointment may be decided when the PhD Fellow has already completed parts of their research training programme or when the appointment is based on a previous qualifying position PhD Fellow, research assistant, or the like in such a way that the total time used for research training amounts to three years.

Remuneration for the position of PhD Fellow is in accordance with the State salary scale code 1017. A compulsory contribution of 2 % to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund will be deducted.

We process personal data given in an application or CV in accordance with the Personal Data Act (Offentleglova). According to the Personal Data Act information about the applicant may be included in the public applicant list, also in cases where the applicant has requested non-disclosure. You will receive advance notification in the event of such publication, if you have requested non-disclosure.

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