The Molecular Plasmonics group (
www.molecular-plasmonics.nl) together with the Photonics Integration group (
https://www.tue.nl/en/research/research-groups/photonic-integration) at Eindhoven University of Technology (The Netherlands) have an open postdoc position (2 years) on 'nanophotonic biosensors'. In this project you will design, fabricate, and test integrated photonic sensors with the aim to push the sensitivity to the single-molecule level.
BackgroundThe widely recognized need for more personalized, patient-centered healthcare requires the development of easy-to-use and sensitive biomedical devices that are capable of detecting specific biomolecules. Nanophotonic structures are increasingly used for biosensing because they transduce the presence of a certain analyte into a large optical signal. This provides avenues toward label-free detection of biomolecules by sensitively monitoring frequency shifts of resonances in e.g., photonic crystals and ring resonators. Applications of these technologies stretch from biophysics to healthcare and environmental monitoring. The sensitivity of these devices is typically limited to several hundred molecules at best, far from the ultimate single-molecule sensitivity.
About the projectYou will design novel nanophotonic sensors with the aim to push the sensitivity of these devices and reach the single-molecule limit. You will fabricate the sensors in the Nanolab cleanroom facility in TU/e and together with a PhD student already employed on the project you will experimentally push the limits of the biosensors in terms of sensitivity and specificity.
About the groupsYou will be supervised by Peter Zijlstra (Molecular Plasmonics group) and by Yuqing Jiao (Photonics Integration group) at TU/e.
The Molecular Plasmonics group is at the department of Applied Physics and is part of the Molecular Biosensing research cluster (~40 researchers). The group performs leading research on optical single-molecule sensing technologies, focusing on nanoplasmonic and nanophotonic sensors. The team is multidisciplinary and hosts physicists and physical chemists who collaborate in a close-knit team. The lab hosts a range of state-of-the-art single-molecule microscopes in optical laboratories, as well as wet-chemical labs where sensors are functionalized and integrated with fluidics.
The Photonics Integration (PhI) group performs leading-edge research into semiconductor-based technology for photonic integration and its applications. The research in the group focuses on developing InP and Si technology, heterogeneous integration, and miniaturization by combining active and passive components on the InP on Si platform.
You will become part of the
Eindhoven Hendrik Casimir Institute, a new institute that brings together photonics, electronics and quantum technology at TU/e. The institute unites researchers from the departments of Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, Mathematics, Biomedical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. With a focus on societal needs the EHCI develops technologies in computing, communication, and sensing.