open phD position - WP2_3, Universität Leuven

In vitro degradation of Mg-alloys under physiological conditions
Place of work: Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium (Prof. Dr. O. van der Biest)

MagnIM is the highly interdisciplinary European network (material scientists, physicists, biologists, (bio)chemists, surface chemists and medical doctors) of eight partners from six countries which aims at the development of biodegradable magnesium based implant materials. It is coordinated by HZG, therefore all applications have to be send to personal@hzg.de.
Note: Eligible applicants have not yet been awarded a doctoral degree and are in the first four years (full-time equivalent) of their research careers. This includes the period of research training, starting at the date of obtaining the degree which would formally entitle the eligible candidate to embark on a doctorate either in the country in which the degree was obtained or in the country of the host organisation. Additionally, at the time of recruitment by the host organisation the successful candidate must not have resided or carried out his/her main activity (work, studies, etc) in the country of the host organisation for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately prior to his/her recruitment. Compulsory national service and/or short stays such as holidays are not taken into account.
Only email applications which supply the demanded reference (WP2_3) and documents will be considered.
job description:
In addition to their biocompatibility another important property of the new alloys to be developed in MagnIM will be their degradation rate in the body. This degradation rate needs to be matched against the regeneration potential of the surrounding tissue. The alloy degradation process is complex and includes parameters from the alloy (composition, microstructure, and surface structure), the chemo-physical environment (pH, fluid flow, the presence of mechanical load) as well as biological factors such as the presence of biological molecules and cells. Several theses will be devoted to this topic. The thesis at K.U. Leuven will address mainly the alloy parameters, the physical parameters and only to a limited extent biological factors. The aim is to define reliable in vitro testing procedures giving the best possible representation of in vivo conditions. The emphasis will be on the quantification of the degradation processes. The generation of hydrogen is of special concern for the application and needs to be addressed in the study. The quantification of the degradation will be complemented by structural characterisations of the corroded material (e.g. scattering, diffraction, and tomography) which will give insight how the microstructure of the materials can be correlated with corrosion and mechanical properties. Topographical characterisation will be performed to evaluate variations over time with respect to surface roughness as an indication if a corrosive process is ongoing.

Nr. Job Positions : 1

Biological sciences - Other

Early stage researcher or 0-4 yrs (Post graduate)

First Stage Researcher (R1)

the post holder will receive living, mobility and travel allowances as per Marie Curie ITN rules

for additional informations please refer to the full job descriptions in this document. http://www.hzg.de/jobwp6