Postdoctoral Position in Medical Physics Group

About IFAE

The Institut de Física d’Altes Energies (IFAE) is a public consortium of the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Autonomous Government of Catalonia, and the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB, a public university) whose main objective is to carry out research and to contribute to the development of high energy physics from a theoretical, experimental and technological point of view. IFAE has the status of a “University Institute" attached to the UAB and its premises are within the campus of the University.

About Medical Physics Group

The Medical Physics Group at IFAE is focused on the development of detector technologies for ionizing radiation. Advances in radiation detectors have enabled X-ray modalities, such as radiography or computed tomography (CT), and nuclear medicine modalities such as time-of-flight positron emission tomography (TOF-PET) or single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), to dramatically improve their diagnostic capabilities. For the last 30 years, the Medical Physics group at IFAE has been working on the application of new pixel detector technologies to X-ray, PET, and SPECT modalities. IFAE has direct access to the cutting-edge technology developed in international fundamental physics research collaborations such as ATLAS, CTA, or K2K, fully available in-house resources for the integration of high-density pixel detectors, and a team of engineers that provides a unique environment to carry out ambitious projects in this area.

Required skills and evaluation criteria

The successful candidate will be expected to have:

• PhD degree in physics with good experience in software, Data Acquisition, and Data analysis.
• Knowledge of Linux and strong programming skills (C/C++ and/or Python).
• Previous experience in detector R&D and/or readout system development.
• Good English communication skills.

The evaluation criteria and their weighting for the submitted applications will be the following:

• Scientific excellence based on the CV and recommendation letters: 30 points.
• Adequation and interest for the offered position: 25 points.
• Software skills: 25 points.
• Previous experience on the field: 20 points.

What will your role be?

You will be joining the effort to develop readout systems to operate high-end chip pixel sensors for applied medical physics. You will contribute to the software development and characterization of the detector prototypes. You will work on the design of a readout software for the operation of hybrid pixel detectors, and their optimization for different experiments in medical physics.

Offered contract:

• Full-time contract (40 h/week).
• Duration: 2 years.
• Contract: Indefinido Actividades Científico Técnicas.
• The position will correspond to a postdoctoral researcher.
• Salary will be proportional to experience and qualifications within the corresponding category range.
• Work with interesting experimental science. Opportunity to gain first-hand learning experience. Personal growth, innovation, and learning every day.
• The selected candidate is expected to join the IFAE as soon as possible.

Application and Selection Process:

Applications should be submitted to Dr. Mokhtar Chmeissani (mokhtar@ifae.es), Dr. Gerard Ariño-Estrada (garino@ifae.es), and rrhh@ifae.es stating the job reference (IFAE2024/59_PostDoc_MedicalPhysics) as the subject of the message. The mail should include their updated CV, cover letter, and contact information for at least two references. Sending CVs to the above addresses implies consent to the IFAE’s legal warning on data privacy.

IFAE is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace and social integration of people with a disability. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates. People from groups that are typically underrepresented in the labour market in general and in Science and Engineering in particular, such as women, minorities, or people with a disability, are particularly encouraged to apply. In compliance with article 121 of the Spanish Public Sector Legal Regime Act, staff with a pre-existing relationship with the Consortium administration (Generalitat de Catalunya and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona) will have priority in the awarding of the position.

Funding Statement