• Are you inspired by working in a multidisciplinary and international environment and by collaborating with academic, clinical and industrial partners?
• Are you passionate about the application of engineering methods and mathematical modeling to improve healthcare?
• Are you eager to work on mathematical models of biological flows and respiratory physiology?
Then the current PhD position could suit you perfectly well.
The respiratory system is of vital importance in sustaining life. Unfortunately, under various circumstances its function can be seriously compromised, for instance in COPD patients. Furthermore, under extreme conditions, patients require involved clinical intervention such as mechanical ventilation to maintain its function. The lung's response to both pathophysiology and mechanical ventilation is impacted significantly by its mechanical environment. However, little is currently known about this environment, as it is difficult to quantify
in vivo due to the heterogeneity of the lung tissue and the lack of straightforward measurement techniques. Computer modelling could play a major role in unraveling the lung's response to pathophysiology and mechanical ventilation and in developing novel treatment strategies.
The
Cardiovascular Biomechanics group of Eindhoven University of Technology's department of Biomedical Engineering is currently expanding its state-of-the-art cardiovascular modelling expertise into the field of respiratory biomechanics. We are looking for an enthusiastic young researcher that wants to perform a pioneering PhD project on computational respiratory physiology in a small team comprising of a PI, assistant professor and a dynamic group of master and bachelor students. During this 4-year PhD project, you will help us develop respiratory biomechanics models and apply them to improve mechanistic understanding of the phenomena occurring in patients suffering from COPD and quantify the lung's mechanical environment during various forms of mechanical ventilation.
The work you will be performing will be supervised by the PI (Wouter Huberts) and a newly appointed assistant professor (Sjeng Quicken) and will be in close collaboration with clinical partners at, amongst others, Maastricht University Medical Center. You will be allowed to play a large role in deciding the course of your PhD journey.