Vacant job

Lund University was founded in 1666 and is consistently ranked among the world's top universities. It has around 47,000 students and more than 8,800 employees in Lund, Helsingborg, and Malmö. We are united in our effort to understand, explain, and improve our world and the conditions of humanity.

Lund University welcomes applicants with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Gender equality, equal opportunities, and diversity are fundamental principles for all aspects of our operations.

Subject Description

The subject encompasses experimental and theoretical studies of biological matter.

We address molecular questions in biological systems and study biological and designed proteins using a combination of classical and advanced techniques, including optical and NMR spectroscopy, surface plasmon resonance, light and X-ray scattering, cryo-electron and fluorescence microscopy. The experimental and theoretical methods used often have their origins in physics. Significant work is devoted to the self-organization and co-organization of proteins as well as interactions with other biomolecules.

The research project takes place within the COMMONS Center of Excellence (www.physchem.lu.se/commons). The environment includes researchers active in the fields of physical chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biophysics, and theoretical chemistry. The overarching goal of COMMONS is to provide a multifaceted scientific environment focused on physical-chemical processes of central importance for the interactions between biological membranes and biomacromolecules. The COMMONS center brings together expertise from Lund University, Chalmers, and the University of Copenhagen.

The project focuses on biomolecular condensates in complex systems, including cells, with the aim of developing methods and methodologies to investigate liquid-liquid phase separation in complex solutions. A central challenge is to establish techniques that can investigate very small condensates, determine whether they are liquid or solid, and assess whether they undergo phase transitions over time. The methods should enable quantification of diffusion rates within condensates, distinguish between associative and segregative phase separation, and identify the molecular factors that govern these phenomena. A central open question concerns why condensates in cells appear to stop growing and do not increase in size (Ostwald ripening and coalescence are expected for liquid phases). What molecular factors limit the size of such condensates? The methods may include advanced optical and cryo-electron microscopy, scattering, and diffusion-based methods.

The project will be conducted in collaboration between various groups, including Sara Linse (Department of Biochemistry and Structural Biology) and Emma Sparr (Department of Physical Chemistry, Lund University). Links to other experimental and theoretical groups within the COMMONS Center of Excellence for biomolecular assembly are possible and encouraged. Please contact [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) or [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) for more information and discussion about potential project ideas related to the research plan required for the application.

Postdoctoral researchers will be able to develop their scientific skills and knowledge within the interdisciplinary center, which will also influence the outcomes of the research projects. The COMMONS center is led by a group of leaders from the participating universities (Emma Sparr, Sara Linse, Fredrik Höök, Martin Malmsten) who, together with additional professors within COMMONS, will guide the projects and training of the recruited postdoctoral researchers towards leading academic or industrial research positions.

This postdoctoral position is also part of the EU co-funded research project AMBER, Advanced Multiscale Biological Imaging using European Research Infrastructures, which will address scientific and sectoral gaps in biological imaging, from molecular and cellular levels to tissue, organ, and organism levels, and is coordinated by the LINXS Institute of Advanced Neutron and X-ray Science. AMBER is funded by the EU's Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) COFUND program. Approximately 15 postdoctoral researchers will be recruited in the fifth call in 2026, with each position lasting for 36 months.

AMBER has six partners: Lund University/MAX IV, Sweden, European Spallation Source (ESS), Sweden, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL), France, International Institute of Molecular Mechanisms and Machines (IMOL), Poland, and Leicester Institute of Structural and Chemical Biology, United Kingdom.

Your work may include clinical and biomedical projects. It may also involve technology development work aimed at combining imaging techniques and data analysis to provide a more integrated view of life processes related to health and disease. As a postdoctoral researcher in the AMBER program, you will gain unparalleled medical, biological, and methodological skills, with a profound potential impact on Europe's next generation of research and researchers. Upon completion of the AMBER program, you will be exceptionally well-equipped to further your career in academia, within infrastructure, in the health and medical technology sectors, and more.

For more information about the total number of announced postdoctoral positions within the AMBER co-funding project, visit https://www.euraxess.se/jobs/392999 (https://www.euraxess.se/jobs/392999)

Interviews will begin in April/May 2026. For more information about AMBER, the application and evaluation process, etc., visit: ambercofund.eu (http://ambercofund.eu)

Job Responsibilities

The main responsibilities for a postdoctoral position are to conduct research. Teaching may also be included, but up to a maximum of 20% of the working time. The position should include the opportunity for three weeks of training in higher education pedagogy.

Detailed description of job responsibilities, such as:

• Research in the subject area – this includes method development, data collection, and data analysis
• Exploration of potential collaborative projects within the COMMONS Center of Excellence beyond the core project
• Active contribution to ongoing discussions within the COMMONS Center of Excellence

At the Faculty of Science, research and education are conducted in biology, astronomy, physics, geoscience, chemistry, mathematics, and environmental science. The activities are conducted at eight departments gathered within the northern university area. The faculty has about 1,500 students, 360 doctoral students, and 700 employees.

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