Are you inspired by the potential of using wearable biosensors for personalized health?

1. Are you fascinated by the application of biochemistry, materials science, and engineering to enable the prevention and early diagnostics of chronic diseases?
2. Are you eager to work with a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, social scientists and engineers to decode the real-time impact of climate change and pollution?

Prolonged exposure to excessive heat and environmental pollution is associated with increased risk of chronic diseases including cancer, cardiovascular, and neurological diseases. The current course of global climate change and decreased environmental quality puts 3.5 billion people in danger, disproportionally affecting disadvantaged populations and increasing health inequalities.To significantly improve population health, targeted and timely interventions are key. Current research linking environmental stressors and health is, however, limited to long-after-the-fact large-scale statistics and long-term trends, restricting our ability to adapt behavior & provide cost-effective, timely, personalized prevention and treatment strategies.

In this PhD project, our goal is to understand the real-time physiological response at the individual level through the development of wearable skin patches for a) personalized, real-time biomarker sensing and b) monitoring and understanding individual behavioral response towards environmental exposure.These breakthroughs will enable evidence-based personalized interventions, providing citizens and clinicians with the toolsets and knowledge to implement personalized prevention and treatment strategies, while empowering policy-making agencies with analytics based on real-time data to develop cost-effective and ethical policies for mitigating environmental health challenges.

In this project, you will develop wearable devices for real-time biomarker monitoring and personalized diagnostics. The work will involve microfabrication, nanoparticle engineering, chemical synthesis, photonics or electrochemistry and potentially fluid dynamics. This position is part of the Convergence Initiative between TU Delft, Erasmus Medical Centre, and Erasmus University Rotterdam. The candidate will closely interact with clinicians, engineers, and social scientists as a member of the Flagship program: ‘Personalized, Real-Time Health Impact of Climate Change and Pollution’, led by Dr. Alina Rwei, together with 20+ principle investigators throughout the three Institutions (i.e. TU Delft, Erasmus Medical Centre, and Erasmus University Rotterdam).

This position has a duration of four years, with an ideal start date of January 2023 (negotiable). 

We are looking for candidates that meet the following criteria:

• Master’s degree in a relevant field such as chemical engineering, bioengineering, (applied) physics, physical chemistry, materials science
• Prior experience with microfabrication, biosensing, organic chemistry, or nanotechnology is highly desirable;
• Creative, open-minded and proactive;
• Excellent experimental and analytical skills;
• Good team player;
• Good English communication and writing skills.

Doing a PhD at TU Delft requires English proficiency at a certain level to ensure that the candidate is able to communicate and interact well, participate in English-taught Doctoral Education courses, and write scientific articles and a final thesis. For more details please check the www.tudelft.nl/onderwijs/opleidingen/phd/admission">Graduate Schools Admission Requirements.

Fixed-term contract: 4 jaar.

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from € 2541 per month in the first year to € 3247 in the fourth year. As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged. For international applicants we offer the Coming to Delft Service and Partner Career Advice to assist you with your relocation.

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Applied Sciences

With more than 1,000 employees, including 135 pioneering principal investigators, as well as a population of about 3,400 passionate students, the Faculty of Applied Sciences is an inspiring scientific ecosystem. Focusing on key enabling technologies, such as quantum- and nanotechnology, photonics, biotechnology, synthetic biology and materials for energy storage and conversion, our faculty aims to provide solutions to important problems of the 21st century. To that end, we train students in broad Bachelor's and specialist Master's programmes with a strong research component. Our scientists conduct ground-breaking fundamental and applied research in the fields of Life and Health Science & Technology, Nanoscience, Chemical Engineering, Radiation Science & Technology, and Engineering Physics. We are also training the next generation of high school teachers and science communicators.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Applied Sciences.