Research Associate, Soft matter, biophysics, and expansion microscopy
Department of Physics

The Department of Physics at Case Western Reserve University College of Arts and Sciences seeks one staff Research Associate to conduct research in the laboratory of Prof. Lydia Kisley starting as soon as the candidate is available. The ideal candidate will work at the interface of biophysics, biomaterials, and analytical chemistry developing a method to detect nutrients at subcellular resolutions. Overall, the Kisley lab studies soft materials using single-molecule microscopy with the goal to advance the single-molecule materials field towards more complex, realistic conditions. More information on the broad focus of the lab can be found at http://physics.case.edu/faculty/lydia-kisley/

The candidate will primarily be responsible for working on a project funded by a private foundation to develop a super-resolution microscopy method using novel soft hydrogel materials. It is required that the candidate will have extensive experience with hydrogels and characterizing soft materials. Further skills in in eukaryotic cell culture, fluorescence microscopy, image processing in MATLAB, Python, or other C-based programming languages are preferred. It is not required, but also ideal, if the candidate has experience in extracellular matrix/mechanobiology or MALDI mass spectrometry. The project is highly collaborative with Prof. Laura Sanchez' bioanalytical chemistry research group at UC Santa Cruz and opportunities for travel are included in this position. Finally, the Research Associate in their staff role will also support the lab environment by managing ordering of supplies and maintaining updates to the group website.

The candidate will be responsible for working with postdoctoral researchers, staff, graduate, and undergraduate students in the lab and participate in maintaining a strong lab culture within the research group. Regular responsibilities will be generating data and text for progress reports, manuscripts and grants, participating in weekly meetings, and assisting with training and mentoring of lab members. In addition, the lab will provide career development opportunities for the candidate such as funds for annual national conference travel and support in developing pedagogical skills and grantsmanship, dependent on the candidate's future career interests. More details about the lab culture and mentoring approach can be found at: https://www.kisleylab.science/lab-manual-mentoring-approach

Support for this position is available for 2 years above NIH NRSA Stipend Levels and includes benefits, conditional on annual reviews. There is the potential for the position to be extended longer dependent on funding levels in the lab and for future promotion to either Senior Research Associate or a Research Assistant Professor position dependent on the candidate's skills and interest in independent grant writing. Sponsorship for a visa is available, if required.

The Department of Physics at CWRU is part of a strong community of soft matter and biophysics research and activities in the Cleveland area. Possibilities to collaborate and network within CWRU School of Medicine, School of Engineering departments such as Macromolecular Sciences and Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, among others, exist in this position.

The Kisley Research Group believes that the best research results from working with a diverse team. We foster a sense of community in our group where everyone should feel welcome, respected, and safe. We strongly encourage applications from female and minority candidates, along with those who have taken efforts to improve diversity in STEM. More information on our philosophy can be found at: https://www.kisleylab.science/diversity-outreach

The applicant must have a Ph.D. degree in Experimental Biophysics, Polymer Science, Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering, Biophysical Chemistry, or a similar field. Interested individuals should send a cover letter, CV, a representative publication in PDF form, and the contact information of three people who could provide recommendations to lydia.kisley@case.edu.