Research Assistant

About the Role
The post supports a 6-month seed-funded project under the UK-HyRES and Henry Royce Institute Joint Research Call. Working in Dr Lin Su's group (https://biohybrids.group/) within the Centre for Molecular Cell Biology, you will engineer bacteria to biosynthesise photoactive semiconductor nanoparticles for solar-driven hydrogen production, and assess the stability of the resulting biohybrid system.

The role is wet lab focused. You will construct engineered bacterial strains, perform in vivo biosynthesis, and characterise the materials using microscopy and spectroscopy. You will run hydrogen evolution experiments under simulated solar irradiation, carry out electrochemical measurements at the bio-abiotic interface, screen mediators for charge transfer, and assess system stability under cyclic light exposure.

You will receive weekly supervision from Dr Su, contribute to data analysis and manuscript preparation, and visit Professor Eileen Yu's group at the University of Southampton for technical exchange. The post is part-time (15 hours/week) for up to 6 months.

About You
You hold a Master's degree (or higher) in Engineering Biology, Microbiology, Biotechnology, or a related field; a PhD is desirable. You have hands-on experience in molecular cloning, bacterial strain engineering, and sterile microbial culture, can plan your own workload, maintain accurate records, and work well in a collaborative team.

Experience in any of the following is welcome: electrochemical techniques (chronoamperometry, cyclic voltammetry); nanomaterial characterisation (electron microscopy, XRD, EDX); photobioreactor operation; biosynthesis or biomineralisation of inorganic materials; or extracellular electron transfer, microbial bioelectrochemistry, or biohybrid systems. A publication or conference record is desirable.

You are competent with scientific data analysis (Python, R, MATLAB, or OriginPro) and Microsoft Office, comfortable working under CL1 containment and COSHH, and communicate clearly. You bring cultural fluency to a cross-cultural team.

About the School/Department/Institute/Project
The School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences (SBBS) is a multidisciplinary research school. In REF 2021, 92% of our research was rated world-leading or internationally excellent. The Centre for Molecular Cell Biology hosts active programmes in synthetic biology, microbial physiology, and engineering biology. We welcome staff from diverse backgrounds and provide a flexible, supportive working environment.

About Queen Mary
At Queen Mary University of London, we believe that a diversity of ideas helps us achieve the previously unthinkable.

Throughout our history, we’ve fostered social justice and improved lives through academic excellence. And we continue to live and breathe this spirit today, not because it’s simply ‘the right thing to do’ but for what it helps us achieve and the intellectual brilliance it delivers.

We continue to embrace diversity of thought and opinion in everything we do, in the belief that when views collide, disciplines interact, and perspectives intersect, truly original thought takes form.

Benefits
We offer competitive salaries, access to a generous pension scheme, 30 days’ leave per annum (pro-rata for part-time/fixed-term), a season ticket loan scheme and access to a comprehensive range of personal and professional development opportunities. In addition, we offer a range of work life balance and family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, and campus facilities.

Queen Mary’s commitment to our diverse and inclusive community is embedded in our appointments processes. Reasonable adjustments will be made at each stage of the recruitment process for any candidate with a disability. We are open to considering applications from candidates wishing to work flexibly.

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