A 2-year postdoc position is available to study the microbial communication in electroactive microbiota, starting July 1st 2019 or shortly thereafter. The postdoc project will be supervised by Associate Professor Yifeng Zhang and is part of GENECHAT project funded by the Carlsberg Foundation Distinguished Fellowship Programme. The successful candidate will join a young, highly innovative, collaborative, productive, responsible, international, gender-balanced, and multidisciplinary team, which is a part of the Residual Resource Engineering Section at DTU Environment.

GENECHAT will employ microbial electrochemistry, microbiology, genomics and bioinformatics, and biological modelling tools to explore how electroactive bacteria communicate with neighboring microbes, which is still a long-standing question in science.

Responsibilities and tasks

The postdoc project aim to EXPLORE the communication between exoelectrogens and neighboring microbes, UNVEIL the underlying mechanisms, and subsequently use the knowledge to MANIPULATE the microbiome on the electrode/minerals for more efficient electron transfer and, finally, to VALIDATE the knowledge with specific microbial electrochemical applications.

Beside laboratory work, you are expected to be able to:

• active dissemination of the obtained results, in high-impact scientific articles and through participation in international conferences, is an integral part of the job
• participation in teaching will also be an integrated part of the job
• participation in co-supervision of PhD students will be an integrated part of the job
• participation in writing project proposal

Qualifications

Candidates should have a PhD degree or equivalent.

The ideal candidate should have a strong background in laboratory methods including microbiology, molecular biology, genetic engineering, and in computational methods including bioinformatics and modelling.

Background in any of these subjects would be useful, but more important are enthusiasm for microbial evolution and ecology, self-motivation, and should thrive in a highly ambitious research group that aims to establish new research fields.

Good communication skills in both written and spoken English are expected.

We offer

DTU is a leading technical university globally recognized for the excellence of its research, education, innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.

Salary and terms of employment

The appointment will be based on the collective agreement with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. The allowance will be agreed upon with the relevant union.

The period of employment is 2 years. There is possibility to extend 2 years more if new grant is raised in connection to this employment.

Further information

Further information may be obtained from Associate Professor Yifeng Zhang, tel.: +45 4525 1410, email: yifz@env.dtu.dk, or Head of Residual Resource Engineering Section, Professor Thomas Fruergaard Astrup, tel: +45 4525 1558, email: thas@env.dtu.dk