Within the Biophysical Engineering Group of the faculty, we are developing photoacoustic imaging to address the limitations of the current technologies for breast cancer imaging. At this moment in our advanced research program within the Biophysical Engineering Group (BPE) with strong collaborations with the clinic, we are poised to make a major impact on the breast imaging paradigm.
We have two vacancies in the team that will develop a new instrument which enables full breast imaging on patients. The goal of this instrument is to detect and/or diagnose breast cancer with high resolution, sensitivity and reliability. This technology will be demonstrated in a study of up to 60 abnormalities (invasive ductal carcinomas and a sub-set of benign tumours) in patients.
The vacancies are for 1 PhD student and 1 Post-doctoral researcher. The successful candidates in collaboration with a technician and Masters students, will design and develop the Photoacoustic Mammoscope (PAM-II) and participate in its validation on patient trials. This will involve researching ultrasound detector elements from collaborators and selecting the most suitable material and architecture for a detector array. Further, design and development of a patient-instrument interface will be undertaken including an appropriate light delivery system. New image reconstruction algorithms that incorporate corrections for acoustic heterogeneities and that allow quantitation of optical absorption coefficient will be implemented. Comprehensive testing of hardware and image reconstruction algorithms will be done on phantoms. The instrument will at a certain point be installed in the Breast Care facility of a hospital where the clinical trials will take place.

University Graduate
PhD. Student requirements
The candidate has an excellent Master’s degree in Physics or Engineering from a reputed university. Project experience in biomedical optics or ultrasound is appreciated. Fluency in English is essential.
The assignment is for 4 years, with a go/no-go assessment at the end of the 1st year. The candidate will disseminate results through publications in journals and presentations at international conferences. The employment period should be completed with a PhD thesis. Vacancy number 08/271.

University of Twente Faculty of Science and Technology

Sharing knowledge, working together, research, innovation. It is all part of the only campus university in the Netherlands: the University of Twente (UT). A university with an international character. We have for example many foreign doctoral students, and master programmes are provided in English. Divided over 5 faculties, we provide more than 50 Bachelor and Master programmes, varying from Applied Physics and Public Administration to Applied Communication Science and Biomedical Technology. In beautiful green surroundings, more than 8000 students and 2700 staff live, work and recreate at the UT. It is also a place where talented people get every opportunity to perform cutting edge research. But as an entrepreneurial university this is not all we do. In ‘Kennispark’, for example, we work together with the business community, we support our students in setting up their own businesses and participate in many projects in the area of knowledge development. In brief, a dynamic climate in which to work and study.

The Faculty of Science and Technology (700 faculty members, 1100 students) offers a range of bachelor and master courses (NanoTechnology, Applied Physics, Chemical Engineering and Technical Medicine). The faculty’s research is organized in three of the university’s interdisciplinary research institutes: MESA+, BMTI, and IMPACT. These institutes increase the vitality of research by enabling collaboration between programs and disciplines, by providing shared facilities, and by attracting funding for joint projects. They also provide a conduit to industrial partners and help in attracting new faculty.

Estimated maximum salary per month: eur 2500 - 3000
Salaryscale 10.
Maximum salary amount in Euro's a month 2558
Employment basis: Temporary for specified period
Duration of the contract: 4 years
Maximum hours per week: 38

Additional conditions of employment:
Our offer
We offer a top level research and academic environment with excellent opportunities for personal development. We are part of the research institute for Biomedical Technology (BMTI) which comprises several groups housed in one building offering excellent shared facilities. Participation in the activities of the BMTI such as symposia and colloquia will expose one to cutting edge research in related fields and offers opportunities for collaboration with other groups.
The PhD student will earn a gross salary of €2,000/- pm in the 1st year to €2,558/- pm in the 4th year.

Additional information about the vacancy can be obtained from:

Dr. S. Manohar
E-mail address:

Prof. Van Leeuwen
E-mail address:

 
Or additional information can be obtained through one of the following links.

You can apply for this job before 14-12-2008 by sending your application to:

When applying for this job always mention the vacancy number AT/08/271.