PhD Position F/M Mean-field modeling of coupled single-cell–population dynamics with intercellular communication

Doctoral project in the Lifeware team at Inria Saclay, within Jakob Ruess's ERC Starting Grant on quantitative models of biochemical processes in single cells coupled to the dynamics of growing cell populations. Stochastic single-cell processes are modelled as continuous-time Markov chains governed by the chemical master equation, and the team's multi-scale framework adds population-level growth and selection so that synthetic gene circuits can be simulated, designed and controlled at the population scale.

The PhD extends this framework with mechanisms for active cell-to-cell communication, working at the intersection of mathematical biology, statistics, control engineering and statistical physics with experimental collaborators.

A graduate (master's) degree or equivalent, with a background in statistical physics and the ability to apply its methods to dynamical systems and stochastic processes; biology expertise is not required. Three-year fixed-term contract starting 1 January 2027 at EUR 2,300 gross per month; the post may sit in a restricted-access area requiring ministerial authorisation. Applications are submitted online on the Inria website.