PhD in Optical Modelling and Data‑Driven Algorithms for In‑Situ Spectral Microplastic Detection

Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium

Updated: about 2 months ago

The Faculty of Engineering, Department of Applied Physics and Photonics, Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT) research group at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) is looking for an excellent PhD candidate to work on selective spectral microscopic imaging (SSMI) for in-situ sensing applications. 

Many emerging applications, including microplastic detection, food safety, bioimaging, and materials analysis, require optical microscopes that can capture spatial and spectral information simultaneously, while remaining fast, data-efficient, and suitable for in-situ use. However, conventional hyperspectral microscopy is often limited by slow acquisition speeds and large volumes of redundant data, restricting its applicability in real-world scenarios.


The goal of this PhD project is to develop a snapshot spatio-spectral microscopy framework that extracts meaningful spectral information from a single image, by combining innovative optical system design with learning-based data processing. The research aims to jointly achieve high spatial resolution, fast imaging speed and reduced data volume, overcoming fundamental trade-offs of traditional approaches. This PhD position focuses on differentiable optical modelling, learning-based reconstruction and classification algorithms, enabling joint optimisation of optics and data processing.


We are looking for an excellent PhD candidate in photonics (48-month duration) to join our team under the supervision of Prof. Heidi Ottevaere and Prof. Yunfeng Nie.

For this function, our Brussels Humanities, Sciences & Engineering Campus (Elsene) will serve as your home base. 


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