PhD-student in real-time ptychographic reconstruction algorithms - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

The Department of Cell and Molecular Biology is one of the most international, broad and distinguished molecular bioscience departments in Europe. The department comprises seven research programs with about 130 employees. Please read more at (https://icm.uu.se).

MAX IV Laboratory is a Swedish national laboratory providing scientists with the most brilliant X-rays for research. With 35 years of experience operating the MAX I-III facilities it is now operating MAX IV, which was inaugurated in June 2016. Please read more at (https://maxiv.lu.se/).

The current position is located within the research group of Filipe Maia within the Molecular Biophysics (for more information see https://biox.io and https://lmb.icm.uu.se), but is seconded to the MAX IV Laboratory in Lund for at least 60% of the time.

Project summary: Scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM) is a popular sample characterisation technique, which provides chemical information at the nanoscale in a simple and quick manner.

Ptychography extends the maximum resolution attainable by using the full information contained in the whole diffraction pattern, rather than just the integrated intensity that conventional STXM utilises. This permits it to recover an image, which is diffraction limited instead of being limited by the size of the X-ray spot. The downside is the significantly more complex data analysis required, as the diffraction patterns have to be phased. This requires much more knowledge and computing power than what’s required for traditional STXM data sets. This barrier is a significant hinder to the routine use of ptychography today. This project will contribute to dramatically change this.

The NanoMAX beamline has one of the most advanced hard X-ray ptychography instruments available, and the SoftiMAX beamline will soon become the brightest soft X-ray ptychography beamline in the world due to the diffraction limited storage ring of MAX IV. The bottleneck to scientific discovery is the long data processing time at both of these stations.

This project aims to develop real-time ptychography reconstruction algorithms, including 2D and 3D far field ptychography as well as Bragg ptychography. These algorithms will be deployed at the SoftiMAX and NanoMAX beamlines of MAX IV. We aim to dramatically decrease reconstruction time and improve the robustness and quality of the nanoscale reconstructions. This project will open the doors of this cutting-edge imaging technology to a much larger fraction of the scientific community, accelerating the pace of scientific discovery.

Duties: The PhD student shall primarily focus on postgraduate studies, but other duties related to teaching and administrative work may be involved, up to a maximum of 20 % of the time. Information about doctoral education, eligibility requirements and admission rules can be found at the faculty website, http://www. teknat.uu.se/utbildning/utbildning-pa-forskarniva/.

Requirements: We are looking for a motivated candidate with an academic degree at the Master level in Physics, Biophysics, Computer Science or Applied mathematics. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of the project other areas may also be considered equivalent. Excellent knowledge of spoken and written English is an absolute requirement. Personal characteristics such as interpersonal skills, curiosity, a passion for discovery and independence are also important factors.

Other qualifications: Knowledge of coherent X-ray imaging and previous programming experience are considered an advantage.

The application:
Your application must include:

• A personal letter where you describe yourself, your research interest, your experiences and why you are interested in the position (max. 2 pages).
• A CV containing your education and other qualifications and a copy of diplomas, list of publications.
• Candidates are encouraged to provide letters of recommendation or contact information to two reference persons.

Rules governing PhD students are set out in the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5, §§ 1-7 and in Uppsala University's rules and guidelines http://regler.uu.se/?languageId=1.

Salary: According to local agreement for PhD students.

Starting date: 2020-10-01 or as otherwise agreed.

Type of employment: Temporary position according to the Higher Education Ordinance chapter 5 § 7.

Scope of employment: 100 %

For further information about the position please contact: Filipe Maia, tel: +46 70 425 0171, filipe.maia@icm.uu.se, for administrative questions contract Hr-generalist Frida Österdahl, tel. +46(0) 18471 4416, e-mail frida.osterdahl@icm.uu.se

Please submit your application by September 25th 2020, UFV-PA 2020/2093.

Are you considering moving to Sweden to work at Uppsala University? If so, you will find a lot of information about working and living in Sweden at www.uu.se/joinus. You are also welcome to contact International Faculty and Staff Services at ifss@uadm.uu.se.