Internal - Research Associate - Microscopy

Internal Applicants Only - Research Associate in Microscopy

School of Biosciences

You will join a Wellcome Trust funded Discovery Award project aimed at developing a transformative multiphoton microscopy technology for applications in mucosal tissue mechanobiology.

Mucosal surfaces are the main interface between the environment and our organism. In the lung, mucus provides a barrier that entraps foreign pathogens/nanoparticles and is moved into the oesophagus by coordinated ciliary beating of epithelial cells. Mucus viscoelasticity is crucial to this movement, and poor mucociliary clearance correlates with lung diseases.

The new technology to be developed in this project will measure mucus viscoelasticity by tracking the trajectories of individual nano‑probes with unprecedented nanoscale precision and will correlatively map the 3D structure and composition of living tissues with subcellular resolution and molecular chemical specificity. The technology will be applied to healthy and diseased lung tissues, in response to inflammatory triggers, infections and drugs.

This research will unlock new discoveries on how mucus mechanics interconnects to cellular and molecular regulatory pathways, including airway remodelling and fibrosis – an unmet medical need.

Your role in the project will be to contribute to the development of the microscope control and data acquisition software and post‑acquisition data analysis. The microscope will implement four‑wave mixing imaging and tracking, coherent Raman scattering, second harmonic generation, third harmonic generation and two‑photon fluorescence, all integrated in one instrument. You will support data acquisition, analysis and scientific interpretation, and engage in scientific publication and dissemination of the results.

You will work in a vibrant research group at the physics‑life science interface. You will be based at Cardiff University, offering great benefits, and will work together with our project collaborators at the University of Cambridge.

Informal enquiries are welcomed and can be directed, in the first instance, to

The position is full time (35 hours per week) and is fixed term for 3 years.

Salary: £41,064 – £46,049 per annum (Grade
6).

Closing date:
Thursday, 9 July 2026.

External applications are currently not being considered for this post. If the decision is made to open the post to external candidates, the strapline at the top will be removed and you will be given ample time to apply – please check back periodically for details.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age.

In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Cardiff University is a signatory to the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions we will evaluate applicants on the quality of their research, not publication metrics or the identity of the journal in which the research is published.

Byddwch yn ymuno â phrosiect Gwo  Darganfod a ariennir gan Ymddiriedolaeth Wellcome a’i nod yw datblygu technoleg microsgopeg amlffotonau drawsnewidiol i’w defnyddio ym maes mecanofioleg meinweoedd mwcosaidd.

Arwynebau mwcosaidd yw'r prif ryngwyneb rhwng yr amgylchedd a'n oorganeb. Yn yr ysgyfaint, mae mwcws yn rhwystr sy'n dal pathogenau/nanoronynnau estron ac yn cael ei symud i'r oesoffagws drwy guriadau ciliaraidd cydlynol celloedd…