Applications are invited for a 4 or 5-year PhD position in the field of HISCORE: Development of Advanced High Sensitivity NMR Detection. This position is embedded at the Institute for Molecules and Materials. We are seeking two PhD candidates who like to work in an international environment and are able to collaborate with our partner groups at the crossroads between chemistry, physics, and engineering.
We focus in particular on the exploration of parahydrogen induced polarisation (PHIP) based protocols as potential polarisation sources and the development of high-fidelity parallel detectors and probe technology capable of rapid sample shuttling and freeze/melt steps. We also focus on the development of Overhauser DNP, rapid-melt DNP and PHIPn approaches for simultaneous in-line characterisation of multiple samples and the development and implementation of hyphenated analysis techniques for pharmaco-metabolomics. As a PhD candidate you will participate in the courses given by members of our group.

• A Master's degree in Chemistry or Physics.
• Good team spirit.
• Thorough knowledge of and experience with NMR and hyperpolarisation methods.

Fixed-term contract: you will be appointed for an initial period of 18 months, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4 year contract) or 3.5 years (5 year contract).

• Employment:  0,8 ( 5 year contract)- 1.0 FTE (4 year contract).
• The gross starting salary amounts to €2,395 per month based on a 38-hour working week, and will increase to €3,061 from the fourth year onwards (salary scale P).
• In addition to the salary: an 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus.
• Duration of the contract: you will be appointed for an initial period of 18 months, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4 year contract) or 3.5 years (5 year contract).
• The intended start date is 1 September 2021.
• Your teaching load may be up to 10% of your appointment.
• You will be able to use our Dual Career and Family Care Services. Our Dual Career and Family Care Officer can assist you with family-related support, help your partner or spouse prepare for the local labour market, provide customized support in their search for employment  and help your family settle in Nijmegen.
• Have a look at our excellent employment conditions. They include a good work-life balance (among other things because of the excellent leave arrangements), opportunities for development and a great pension scheme.

Radboud University

We want to get the best out of science, others and ourselves. Why? Because this is what the world around us desperately needs. Leading research and education make an indispensable contribution to a healthy, free world with equal opportunities for all. This is what unites the more than 22,000 students and 5,000 employees at Radboud University. And this requires even more talent, collaboration and lifelong learning. You have a part to play!

Faculty of Science

In our ERC Synergy Grant funded project HiSCORE - Highly Informative Drug Screening by Overcoming NMR Restrictions, we seek to advance hyperpolarisation, miniaturisation, parallelisation and spin dynamics, and combine these research themes for highly informative drug discovery using nuclear magnetic resonance. We believe that, eventually, magnetic resonance can provide an in-depth biophysical characterisation of drug candidates in a much shorter time than today and will become a very effective platform for rapid drug discovery. This highly interdisciplinary project is run by four laboratories (Geoffrey Bodenhausen, Arno Kentgens, Jan Korvink, and Benno Meier) in three institutions (ENS Paris, Radboud University Nijmegen and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology).

Magnetic Resonance Research Center
The Magnetic Resonance Research Center (MRRC) at Radboud University focuses on the development of hyperpolarisation methodology in a microfluidic context, including advanced sample handling and use of solvents such as supercritical CO2. We explore Overhauser DNP, rapid-melt DNP and parahydrogen induced polarisation, aiming at a generic approach for hyperpolarising drug candidates. Further research will include the development of parallel NMR detectors and methods to run experiments independently in each detector. Our lab is part of the Dutch national NMR facility and houses a range of state-of-the-art NMR spectrometers ranging from 300 - 950 MHz. For the HiSCORE project, a dedicated 400 MHz WB spectrometer equipped with a 263 GHz CW oscillator is available. Furthermore, the hyphenation of superfluidic chromatography and NMR will be further developed at 950 MHz. The group has unique expertise in the development of miniaturised NMR probe technology.

You will be appointed as a PhD candidate at the Institute for Molecules and Materials (IMM). This institute is one of the major research institutes of the Faculty of Science at Radboud University. IMM is a research institute in chemistry and physics fostering interdisciplinary research. Its mission is to design and create functional molecules and materials with the intention of fundamentally understanding their behaviour.