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PhD in volumetric ultrafast ultrasound imaging of the heart
KU Leuven

PhD in volumetric ultrafast ultrasound imaging of the heart

2025-07-18 (Europe/Brussels)
Baan opslaan

Over de werkgever

KU Leuven is an autonomous university. It was founded in 1425. It was born of and has grown within the Catholic tradition.

De pagina van de werkgever bekijken

About the research program providing the framework for the PhD position:
Valves play a vital role in supporting cardiac function by ensuring the efficient blood circulation and oxygenation of our body. More than 2% of the population suffer from the improper closure of one or several valves, leading to regurgitation of part of the pumped blood. Valve regurgitation can severely and silently compromise cardiac efficiency, leading to heart failure and other cardiovascular complications. While transthoracic Doppler echocardiography is the front-line modality to assess regurgitation severity, the reliability of the extracted qualitative or semi-quantitative parameters is widely questioned. As a consequence, the management of patients suffering from valve regurgitation is currently far from optimal.
The SQUARE project (“Super-resolved quantification assessment of valvular regurgitation using echocardiography”) channels recent advances in echography to develop a new method for the accurate quantification of valve regurgitation, by improving the spatiotemporal resolution of intracardiac 3D blood flow images by several orders of magnitude. This method will improve both the feasibility and accuracy of regurgitation quantification compared to the current clinical practice. The SQUARE-project is a joint collaboration between the Cardiovascular Imaging & Dynamics laboratory (KU Leuven, located within university hospital Gasthuisberg, Belgium), the Microelectronics System Design Lab (University of Florence, Italy) and the Biophysical Models for Medical Applications lab (Ghent University, Belgium). The SQUARE multidisciplinary consortium integrates expertise in ultrasound image acquisition and processing, computational fluid dynamics, and the clinical management of cardiac diseases. As part of the SQUARE project, the PhD candidate will closely collaborate with three other PhD students (2 engineers/physicists, 1 medical) and two post-doctoral researchers, fostering collaboration within a dynamic research team.

About the supervising lab and the university:
The research will be conducted at the Lab on Cardiovascular Imaging & Dynamics which is part of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences (https://gbiomed.kuleuven.be/english/research/50000635) of the University of Leuven (www.kuleuven.be). It is embedded within the Medical Imaging Research Center (MIRC; https://mirc.uzleuven.be/MedicalImagingCenter), a multi-disciplinary research institute with approximately 100 researchers working on fundamental and translational research in the area of medical imaging and image processing. The MIRC is located on the campus of the university hospital Gasthuisberg (www.uzleuven.be) where researchers and clinicians work in close cooperation.

Project

This PhD project will focus on developing volumetric ultrasound sequences to image the heart in 3D with high spatiotemporal resolution. Additionally, advanced motion management algorithms will be developed to compensate for respiratory and cardiac motion. The candidate will work closely with the Microelectronics System Design lab in Florence to facilitate exchange of expertise in ultrasound imaging and cardiac motion tracking (an optional secondment at the University of Florence can be organized). The imaging sequences will be initially developed in a computer simulation environment, before being implemented on a research ultrasound scanner. The sequences will undergo acoustic safety testing using an acoustic measurement bench and their performance will be validated in dynamic mock models of the heart (soft robotic left ventricle phantom), before being applied to healthy volunteers and patients. With our lab located in the hospital, the candidate will work in close collaboration with medical specialists, contributing to the validation process in patients and facilitating its seamless integration into clinical practice.

Profile

You have a MSc degree in engineering or physics
You are familiar with ultrasound imaging and its applications
You have good programming skills in Matlab
You have experience with building experimental setups
You have proven your proficiency in English language equivalent to B2 level
You are enthusiastic and result oriented
You can work independently and have a critical mindset
You are a team player and communicate well

Offer

We offer a 4-year PhD position with market conform wages in a large, multidisciplinary research center in the heart of Europe, equipped with state of the art research infrastructure. The position is available from October 1st.

Interested?

Submit documents such as motivation letter, your CV, and (optional) recommendation letters. Also include transcripts of your Ba and Ms diploma's containing information on the education program and evaluation. For more information, please contact Dr. Sophie Heymans ([email protected])

KU Leuven strives for an inclusive, respectful and socially safe environment. We embrace diversity among individuals and groups as an asset. Open dialogue and differences in perspective are essential for an ambitious research and educational environment. In our commitment to equal opportunity, we recognize the consequences of historical inequalities. We do not accept any form of discrimination based on, but not limited to, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, ethnic or national background, skin colour, religious and philosophical diversity, neurodivergence, employment disability, health, or socioeconomic status. For questions about accessibility or support offered, we are happy to assist you at this email address.

Informatie over de vacature

Functienaam
PhD in volumetric ultrafast ultrasound imaging of the heart
Werkgever
Locatie
Oude Markt 13 Leuven, België
Gepubliceerd
2025-06-18
Uiterste sollicitatiedatum
2025-07-18 23:59 (Europe/Brussels)
2025-07-18 23:59 (CET)
Soort functie
PhD
Baan opslaan

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Over de werkgever

KU Leuven is an autonomous university. It was founded in 1425. It was born of and has grown within the Catholic tradition.

De pagina van de werkgever bekijken

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