Postdoctoral Researcher in Acoustofluidic Loading of Lipid Vesicles (f/m/d)
Heidelberg University is a comprehensive university with a strong focus on research and international standards. With around 32,200 students and 9,540 employees, including numerous top researchers, it is a globally respected institution that also has outstanding economic significance for the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region.
The AcouLiVe project brings together the Biomedical Microfluidics Group at Heidelberg University and the Biomembrane Engineering Group at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research. We use ultrasound to load therapeutic cargo into lipid vesicles in continuous flow while preserving cargo activity and membrane integrity.
Heidelberg University is recruiting for the following full-time position (100%), starting in 2027 on a date to be agreed. The initial appointment is for 12 months, with the possibility of a further 12-month extension.
Postdoctoral Researcher in Acoustofluidic Loading of Lipid Vesicles (f/m/d)
Your tasks:
- Engineer lipid vesicles with controlled composition, fluidity, stiffness, asymmetry and surface chemistry.
- Develop a continuous-flow µSonicator and determine how frequency, power, duty cycle, residence time, flow rate and device geometry affect membrane permeabilization.
- Load mRNA, proteins and ribonucleoprotein complexes into vesicles. Measure loading efficiency, leakage, recovery, stability and membrane integrity using particle sizing, microscopy and biochemical assays.
- Relate membrane properties and acoustic exposure to cellular uptake, cargo release and activity. Assess GFP expression, genome editing and cytotoxicity.
- Publish and present results, help supervise students in both laboratories and contribute to grant proposals.
Your profile:
- A PhD in biomedical or chemical engineering, pharmaceutical sciences, biophysics, physics, chemistry, biochemistry, nanomedicine or a related discipline.
- Strong experimental skills in either lipid-vesicle engineering (e.g. formulation, encapsulation or intracellular delivery) or microfluidic engineering (e.g. acoustofluidics, transducers or device fabrication), and an interest in learning the complementary methods.
- Experience in quantitative experimental design and data analysis, the ability to work independently and collaboratively, and excellent written and spoken English.
- Experience with DLS, NTA, fluorescence assays, mammalian cell culture, confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, rapid prototyping or data analysis in Python or MATLAB would be an advantage.
We offer:
- Joint supervision by Michael Gerlt and Kevin Jahnke, with access to both laboratories’ facilities for microfabrication, acoustofluidics, vesicle preparation and characterization, microscopy, flow cytometry and cell culture.
- Mentoring and opportunities to develop an independent research profile through student supervision, international conferences and follow-up proposals to the DFG and European funding programmes.
Heidelberg University will issue the employment contract. Remuneration follows pay group E13 TV-L. Monthly gross pay depends on the applicable TV-L pay scale and experience step. Current salary tables for Baden-Württemberg are available at https://lbv.landbw.de/leistungen-und-services/gehaltstabellen.
The position is generally suitable for job sharing.
Please apply by 03 December 2026 by emailing a single PDF to both michael.gerlt@imseam.uni-heidelberg.de and kevin.jahnke@mr.mpg.de. Use the subject line “Postdoc Application AcouLiVe [Last Name]”. Include your CV, a cover letter describing your motivation and relevant experience, contact details for two academic references, a project idea explaining your contribution to AcouLiVe (up to one page) and a portfolio of relevant experimental and technical skills (up to half a page).
Heidelberg University stands for equal opportunities and diversity. Persons with severe disabilities will be given preference if they are equally qualified. Information on job advertisements and the collection of personal data is available at www.uni-heidelberg.de/en/job-market.