Postdoctoral researcher (M/F) for the development of a nonlinear fluorescence microscope with adaptive optics for monitoring intraneuronal transport at the molecular motor scale in vivo

CNRS, France

Updated: about 2 months ago
Location: Orsay, LE DE FRANCE
Job Type: FullTime
Deadline: 21 Mar 2026

1 Mar 2026
Job Information
Organisation/Company

CNRS
Department

Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay
Research Field

Physics
Researcher Profile

Recognised Researcher (R2)
Application Deadline

21 Mar 2026 - 23:59 (UTC)
Country

France
Type of Contract

Temporary
Job Status

Full-time
Hours Per Week

35
Offer Starting Date

1 May 2026
Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by a EU programme
Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

Molecular motors are key elements in the transport of molecules within cells, particularly in the long branches of neurons. This transport is disrupted at very early stages of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. LuMIn (ENS Paris-Saclay) has already demonstrated the possibility of studying several parameters (speed, frequency of stops, etc.) in neuron cultures using the fluorescence of NV centers in diamond nanocrystals (NCs). These are internalized into cells by endocytosis, and the vesicle containing them is then taken over by molecular motors. The NC then serves as a light probe for their movement.

To give an order of magnitude, a molecular motor typically takes a step of 10 nm in about 10 ms. The spatiotemporal precision of these measurements has been recently greatly increased by developing a new two-photon microscope (the signal is no longer fluorescence but comes from second harmonic generation by the NCs). This microscope, using a fast digital holography device, allows BaTiO3 NCs (diameter ~130 nm) to be located in super-localization mode with spatial accuracy of approximately 5 nm and temporal accuracy of 2 to 5 ms in cell cultures on coverslips.

The aim of this project is to achieve the same performance in depth in biological tissues for the study of intraneuronal transport in vivo in animal models such as zebrafish, in collaboration with INRAE. This will be possible thanks to infrared illumination, which provides access to a window of transparency in biological tissues and depths of several hundred micrometers. However, tissues with a non-homogeneous optical index induce aberrations that alter the profile of the illumination beam during the tracking of a single NC and consequently degrade its localization accuracy. In order to maintain the accuracy of NC trajectory measurement, which is fundamental at the scale of a single molecular motor's dynamics, it is therefore necessary to correct aberrations over time to restore a diffraction-limited illumination beam. This will be achieved using an adaptive optics (AO) loop specially designed for in vivo two-photon microscopy, whose performance has already been demonstrated at ISMO.

The candidate will contribute to various aspects of the project:
- optical and optomechanical design, assembly and alignment, assembly control and synchronization of components
- characterization of the setup performances
- preparation of test and biological samples, data acquisition, data analysis
- communication (with project partners, conferences, publications)

This multidisciplinary work will be carried out at ISMO within the interdisciplinary NanoBio team (CNRS/Paris-Saclay University Joint Unit) in close collaboration with LuMIn at ENS Paris Saclay, as part of an ANR contract, with a consortium of six partners.


Where to apply
Website
https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Candidat/Offre/UMR8214-ALEFRA-001/Candidater.aspx

Requirements
Research Field
Physics
Education Level
PhD or equivalent

Languages
FRENCH
Level
Basic

Research Field
Physics
Years of Research Experience
1 - 4

Additional Information
Eligibility criteria

- Knowledge and skills in physics/optics, particularly in instrumental optics and physical optics
- Knowledge in fluorescence microscopy and imaging of biological samples
- Skills in optical alignment
- Skills in control systems and Python programming
- Skills in data processing and image analysis
- Oral and written communication skills, ability to facilitate collaboration at the interface between physics, mathematics, and biology


Website for additional job details

https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/CDD/UMR8214-ALEFRA-001/Default.aspx

Work Location(s)
Number of offers available
1
Company/Institute
Institut des Sciences Moléculaires d'Orsay
Country
France
City
ORSAY

Contact
City

ORSAY
Website

https://www.ismo.universite-paris-saclay.fr/accueil-ismo/

STATUS: EXPIRED

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