PhD position in Origin

Introduction

UNIL is a leading international teaching and research institution, with over 5,000 employees and 17,000 students split between its Dorigny campus, CHUV and Epalinges. As an employer, UNIL encourages excellence, individual recognition and responsibility.

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NCCR GENESIS - Fully funded PhD position

The National Centre of Competence in Research NCCR Genesis is a research infrastructure project funded by SNSF focussing on exploring the emergence of life in the Universe. This interdisciplinary research infrastructure brings together physicists, earth and planetary scientists, chemists and biologists to understand the conditions and the mechanisms that enable life to emerge. Developing reliable methods to detect reliable traces of life (biosignatures)– whether through remote sensing or direct onsite measurements– requires significant innovation.

These challenges demand close collaboration across physics, biology, chemistry and the earth sciences. NCCR Genesis does not aim to provide answers in all fields, but to drive innovative research and achieve decisive progress.

Details on NCCR Genesis are available on its website (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..

NCCR Genesis is deeply committed to equality, diversity and inclusion.

Our aim is to cultivate a respectful and fair work culture with equal access to professional development and support for all. We strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups.

We are seeking a full-time PhD student to join the Environmental Fluid Mechanics laboratory at UNIL (led by Professor Pietro de Anna, at the Institute of Earth Science) and the Laboratory of Statistical Biophysics at EPFL (led by Professor Paolo De Los Rios, at the Institute of Physics). This post is fully founded by the Swiss National Science foundation (NCCR Genesis).

Expected start date in position :
Fall 2026 or upon mutual agreement

Contract length : 1 year + 2 + 1, maximum 4 years

Activity rate : 100 %

Workplace :
Lausanne Dorigny - Géopolis

The successful candidate will work on a PhD thesis on chemical reaction networks in controlled and structured environments. This will be achieved by developing novel microfluidics devices to understand how non-equilibrium and non-homogeneous environments influence the network kinetics and the consequent abundance of reaction products. The physical and chemical properties will be tuned independently. Using pumps, pressure controllers and time-lapse video-microscopy, flow experiments through microfluidics structures will be performed to quantify the local reaction kinetics.

Experimental results will be compared with theoretical models based on reaction-diffusion equations. The candidate will be trained in cutting-edge microfluidics and numerical models. The research work will involve collaborations with a suite of international colleagues across Europe and the US. Most of the PhD student’s time will be dedicated to research, but contributing to some teaching activities can be discussed, including the additional possibility of supervising master students.

Master degree (or be near completion) in Physics or Mechanical Engineering or Civil & Environmental Engineering or Chemical Physics/Physical Chemistry or related discipline with a good understanding of at least one of the following topics: i) chemical physics, ii) statistical mechanics, iii) transport phenomena (dispersion, mixing and reactive transport), iv) microfluidics and video-microscopy. Written and spoken English are required, but working knowledge of French (the local language in Lausanne) is not necessary.

Commitment to research based on experimental, numerical and modeling approaches.

We offer a nice working place in a multicultural, diverse and dynamic academic environment. Opportunities for professional training, a lot of activities and other benefits to discover.

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The Environmental Fluid Mechanics Laboratory is an established facility, located at the Institute of Earth Sciences (ISTE) at the University of Lausanne, equipped with state-of-the-art technology including fully…