We are seeking a highly motivated candidate for a PhD position focused on bringing visual analytics into daily neurosurgical planning with diffusion MRI tractography. The project aims to address the critical need for intelligent software that enables interactive visualization of key parameters, thereby facilitating a thorough quality assessment of tractography at every stage. Diffusion MRI tractography has revolutionized our understanding of brain connectivity and is increasingly used in preoperative planning for neurosurgical interventions. However, the reliability and accuracy of tractography remain challenging due to the complexity and variability of the underlying brain architecture. This research endeavor will involve the development of novel techniques and algorithms that integrate advanced visual analytics methods with diffusion MRI data to enhance neurosurgical decision-making processes. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to collaborate with leading experts in both neurosurgery and visualization, pushing the boundaries of medical image analysis and contributing to improved patient outcomes.

The PhD candidate will play a pivotal role in advancing the field of neurosurgical planning by developing intelligent software tools for interactive visualization of key parameters in diffusion MRI tractography. The research will focus on addressing the limitations of existing visualization approaches and propose innovative solutions that enable comprehensive quality assessment of tractography results. The candidate will leverage state-of-the-art techniques in visual analytics, data visualization, and machine learning to design and implement a user-friendly software interface that empowers neurosurgeons to explore and evaluate the reliability and accuracy of tractography-based surgical plans. By integrating quantitative measures and intuitive visual representations about uncertainty, the developed software will assist in identifying potential pitfalls, optimizing surgical strategies, and ultimately improving patient outcomes. The successful candidate will have access to cutting-edge neuroimaging datasets, advanced computing resources, and a collaborative research environment, fostering interdisciplinary knowledge exchange and career development in the emerging field of neurosurgical visualization and analytics.

It is expected that the candidate will author high-quality scientific papers and showcase outputs of this work at international conferences.

The project will be developed within the visualization cluster under the supervision of Dr. Maxime Chamberland (m.chamberland@tue.nl) and Prof. Anna Vilanova (a.vilanova@tue.nl), and in strong collaboration with Prof. Luc Florack (mathematics) and Dr. Geert-Jan Rutten (ETZ Tilburg).

The visualization cluster (https://research.tue.nl/en/organisations/visualization) at TU/e has a strong track record in visualization and visual analytics for ML models and high-dimensional data. It has generated several award winning contributions at major visualization conferences (IEEE VIS, IEEE InfoVis, IEEE VAST, EuroVis);  several successful start-up companies (MagnaView, Process Gold and SynerScope); and a number of techniques that are used on a large scale world-wide.

We are looking for a candidate who meets the following requirements.

• You are enthusiastic about research in scientific data visualization, medical image analysis, visual analytics and computer graphics.
• You have experience with or a strong background in medical visualization, computer graphics, medical image analysis. Preferably you finished a master in Computer Science, (Applied) Mathematics, Biomedical Engineering/Imaging.
• Expertise in the field of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and tractography is a plus but not mandatory.
• You have good communication skills and are able to work in a multidisciplinary team.
• You have strong programming skills (e.g., C++, Python, modern OpenGL or VTK).
• You are creative, critical, analytical, motivated and persistent.
• You have a good command of the English language (knowledge of Dutch is not required).  

A meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. In addition, we offer you:

• Full-time employment for four years, with an intermediate evaluation (go/no-go) after nine months. You will spend 10% of your employment on teaching tasks.
• Salary and benefits (such as a pension scheme, paid pregnancy and maternity leave, partially paid parental leave) in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, scale P (min. €2,770 max. €3,539).
• A year-end bonus of 8.3% and annual vacation pay of 8%.
• High-quality training programs and other support to grow into a self-aware, autonomous scientific researcher. At TU/e we challenge you to take charge of your own learning process.
• An excellent technical infrastructure, on-campus children's day care and sports facilities.
• An allowance for commuting, working from home and internet costs.
• A Staff Immigration Team and a tax compensation scheme (the 30% facility) for international candidates.