PhD Position

This is a four-year PhD position within a nationally funded, multi-partner research consortium, Towards De-Novo Life, aiming to achieve minimal life using chemical components rather than biological macromolecules.

The PhD candidate will contribute by developing new microfluidic tools to work with micrometer-sized coacervate droplets, the compartments in which chemical replication, growth and evolution will be studied.

Essential qualifications:

• MSc degree in Biomedical Engineering, Physical or Analytical Chemistry, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience with microfabrication and microfluidics.
• Experience with fluorescence imaging.
• Enthusiasm, self-motivation, creativity, and team spirit.
• Ability to work in a multidisciplinary environment.
• Excellent English communication skills, verbal and written.

Preferred qualifications:

• Programming skills for data analysis (Python, MATLAB, or similar).
• Ability to design and implement microcontroller-based control systems (Arduino, Raspberry Pi, etc.).
• Experience with synthetic organic chemistry.

• Develop new microfluidic tools to manipulate and study micrometer-sized coacervate droplets.
• Create a first-generation microfluidic platform to achieve growth and division of coacervate droplets.
• Design and implement a more complex microfluidic platform to confine droplet populations and monitor their growth and mutation rates.
• Track “mother” droplets and their “daughters” using fluorescence microscopy.
• Add precursor materials ("nutrients") to experiments and implement random removal of individuals to mimic "death" events.

What you can expect from us:

• 232 vacation hours per year, based on a 38-hour workweek, with the option to work more or fewer hours in exchange for more or fewer free hours.
• End-of-year bonus of 8.3% and 8% holiday allowance.
• Extensive opportunities for personal and professional development.
• Temporary full-time (1.0 FTE) position for one year initially, with the option of renewal for another three years.

The University of Groningen (UG) is a European top university conducting interdisciplinary research and teaching across a wide range of fields.

The Faculty of Science and Engineering provides teaching and research from physics and biology to artificial intelligence, mechanical engineering, and pharmacy, collaborating with industry, healthcare, and societal partners on urgent challenges such as energy, sustainability, digitization, and medical technology.

You will join the Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy (GRIP), positioned within the Faculty of Science and Engineering and physically located within the University Medical Center Groningen of the Faculty of Medical Sciences. GRIP's pharmaceutical research is multidisciplinary, bridging clinical and biomedical sciences with chemistry, mathematics, engineering, and physics.