PhD Position: Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation and Computational Affective Neuroscience

PhD project in Prof. Karin Roelofs's Affective Neuroscience group, funded by the ERC Advanced Grant HEART2ADAPT, which studies how the body's autonomic stress state shapes approach–avoidance decisions under threat. The project tests causal mechanisms with transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS), including offline TUS and the development of MR-compatible online TUS applied to the amygdala, ventral striatum and dorsal ACC, with protocol development, data collection and computational modelling of behavioural and neural data.

The candidate is appointed by the Behavioural Science Institute (Faculty of Social Sciences), is based at the Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging and works closely with Lennart Verhagen's group. The contract is 0.8–1.0 FTE (5- or 4-year track) at €3,204 gross per month rising to €4,051. Applications close on 9 November 2026; first interviews are on 26 November and the preferred start is January 2027.

Master's degree in cognitive neuroscience or an adjacent field (psychology, biology, biomedical sciences, computer sciences or another relevant MSc); interest in cognitive and affective neuroscience and computational psychiatry; experience acquiring and analysing fMRI or MEG data; experience in non-invasive neuromodulation (preferably TUS) or willingness to master it; experience with peripheral psychophysiological measures; fluent written and spoken English.