Job description

This PhD will be headquartered at the Neuronic Engineering research group at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. The multidisciplinary research at the Neuronic Engineering unit at KTH School of Technology and Health is aimed at the biomechanics of head and neck injuries. As part of the Marie Curie training experience, the candidate will spend 3 months at KU Leuven, Belgium, and 3 months at AGV, Italy.

Finite element modelling of axonal injuries:

This PhD project is part of a Marie-Curie International Training Network, HEADS (Head protection: a European training network for Advanced Designs in Safety), with UC Dublin, KTH Stockholm and KU Leuven as academic partners, and Charles Owen, Lazer Sport and AGV as industrial partners.

The scientific goal of HEADS is to improve the understanding of head impact injury and to design new helmet standard test methods that recognize the influence of rotational kinematics. This will lead to improved helmets and a reduction in the severity of injuries and the numbers of fatalities. This objective will be achieved through a combination of computational simulations of real-life accidents, experimental and computational investigation of injury thresholds, and design of new helmet certification tests.

Understanding the correlation between the internal structure of tissue and macroscopic mechanical properties is important to accurately predict injury levels to patients. In particular, anisotropy must be considered in computational head models used to predict Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) so that suitable pass/fail thresholds for helmet testing can be established. In vitro analysis of brain injury mechanisms suggests stretching of white matter and the consequent local physiological impairment of neuronal cells a potential mechanism of microstructural injury. The susceptibility of tissue appears to be the result of both viscoelastic properties and highly organized structure in white matter tracts. The project will develop a hyperviscoelastic fibre reinforced anisotropic material model to account for time rate and local morphological dependence in TBI. Cases of concussion and axonal injury will then be simulated by using FE head models to gain an improved understanding of the biomechanics of concussion and diffuse axonal injuries.

Offer:

The doctoral student is offered a 4 year highly specialized doctoral training, making the candidate an expert in head impact biomechanics and helmet design technologies as well as being aware of commercializable market opportunities. The doctoral candidate will work in world-class facilities with highly qualified experts, and will benefit from the training scheme developed based on the expertise of academic and industrial partners. This project will reach a new level of understanding of head injury and how head injury should be prevented, with directly applicable results to European industry. It will develop a well-networked group of young engineers and scientists into world-class researchers and innovators with numerous career paths open to them, who will advance technology for the benefit of society and maintain Europe as a global leader in industrial development.

Qualifications

KTH Royal Institute of Technology is seeking a highly motivated recently graduated Master (Of Science) in Engineering. Candidates are willing to change the world (and to travel to research partners).

Preferably, the person should have a Master in Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Engineering Physics or equivalent, preferably with a biomechanics background. Knowledge of continuum mechanics and/or FE modeling is desirable but not required.

Great importance will be placed on the applicants’ ability of working independently, communicating in English and working in group with other researchers.

A requirement for EU funding, which is a prerequisite for the position, is that the candidate must not have resided in Sweden for more than 12 months the last three years (Marie Curie’s Mobility Requirements).

Trade union representatives

You’ll find contact information to trade union representatives at KTH:s web page.

Application

Log into KTH’s recruitment system in order to apply to this position. You are the main responsible to ensure that your application is complete according to the ad. Your complete application must be received at KTH no later than April 01, 2015.

Applicants are required to submit:

1. Curriculum Vitae
2. An official transcript/academic record
3. A short presentation of why the applicant wishes to pursue doctoral studies

You´re welcome to apply for multiple positions but you need to registrate one application per position.

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