PhD Position – iNIRS System Architecture and SiN Photonic Integrated Platform for Wearable Biomarker Sensing

PhD Position - iNIRS System Architecture and SiN Photonic Integrated Platform for Wearable Biomarker Sensing 
(Rinn Semiconductor - Ireland’s Centre for Semiconductor Innovation CARE Theme (Digital Healthcare) CARE 2: Wearable Biomarker Sensing Platform for Neonatal Care)

About Tyndall

Tyndall National Institute is an international leader in semiconductors, photonics and deep-tech research and innovation. As a leading collaborative European research institute, Tyndall is a key actor and hosting partner in the delivery of the ‘Chips for Europe Initiative’ (EU Chips Act).

Tyndall is Ireland’s leading research and innovation organisation and it is the national focal point for excellence in deep-tech research, development and graduate training at the convergence of nanotechnology, microelectronics, photonics, electronics and AI. Tyndall is recognised as an international research leader in semiconductor, chip and digital technologies, particularly as applied to the fields of Information & Communications, Health & Life Sciences, Agritech & Food Security, Energy and Climate Mitigation, emerging fields such as quantum, and novel computing paradigms.

The Institute’s key objective is to see frontier research activities having a significant impact on economic development and societal challenges in Ireland, Europe and beyond. Central to Tyndall’s mission is delivering economic impact through research excellence in partnership with industry and academia. With an annual turnover of more than €50m, the Institute has a community of over 600 researchers, engineers, support staff, postgraduate students, interns and industry researchers-in-residence.

With significant committed Irish government support, Tyndall will grow to be 1,000 people by 2030, with approximately 750 researchers, including 250 PhD students. A new 17,000 m2 research building is under development adjacent to the Cork headquarters and there are developing plans to expand Tyndall’s existing Dublin research labs and to establish other research sites within Ireland.

Tyndall’s expansion is also supported by recent national and EU funding wins for significant (M€10’s) additional research equipment across a range of areas such as semiconductor processing, microscopy, quantum technologies, heterogeneous integration, ultra-high speed optical communications and RF through THz characterisation.

About Rinn Semiconductor 

Rinn Semiconductors is part of a constellation of seven major new centres which collectively represent an investment of €460M in advanced research by the Government of Ireland. Rinn Semiconductors aims to lead Ireland’s response to the end of Moore’s Law scaling, the point where traditional improvements in computer chips slows down or ends, by pioneering modular integrated circuit-based (chiplet-based) semiconductor design and integration. With deep expertise in the areas of Heterogeneous Integration and Advanced Packaging, the Rinn Semiconductors team propose to enable transformative advances in these technologies and to apply them in three main application areas: Future Internet, Sustainable Energy and Environment, and Digital Healthcare. A key objective of the Rinn is to foster deep collaboration across the seven universities and institutions involved, by leveraging the semiconductor fabrication facilities at Tyndall, ultimately creating a cohesive “atom to systems” value chain in Ireland, connecting everything from basic materials research through to complete technology solutions. The Rinn will operate in close collaboration with Ireland’s vibrant semiconductor industry sector which supports 20,000 high skilled jobs and includes world leading multinational companies, small and medium sized enterprises and start-ups. 

The successful applicant will: 

• Join a world-class and highly diverse community of more than 100 PhD students, more than a 100 Postdoctoral Researchers and around 35 experienced PIs and Research Fellows 
• Engage with over 30 industry partners to learn about their work and future career opportunities 
• Become an in-house entrepreneur and explore the opportunity to commercialise your research through a Spin-Out company 
• Follow in the footsteps of our current trainees where over 86% of PhDs have transitioned into industry with some of the world’s leading semiconductor companies, in Ireland and the EU. 
• If you aspire to be a future PI and academic research leader our programme will support you to build your research track record and vision, equipping you to take the next steps on your career journey. 

About the Role 

The CARE (Digital Healthcare) theme at Rinn Semiconductor - Ireland’s Centre for Semiconductor Innovation, hosted at Tyndall National Institute (a research flagship of University College Cork, UCC), is offering a fully funded PhD position focused on the system architecture, silicon-nitride (SiN) passive PIC, and signal-processing algorithms for interferometric near-infrared spectroscopy (iNIRS). This research sits within CARE 2, which aims to develop a wearable biomarker sensing platform for neonatal care. 

Today’s wearable health monitors rely on continuous-wave (CW) optical technology, which suffers from skin-colour bias, tissue-scattering inaccuracies, and motion artefacts, and on bulky PCB-based electronics that limit cost, size, and power efficiency. By combining innovations in integrated silicon photonics and heterogeneous semiconductor integration, CARE 2 will deliver a compact, low-power, wearable interferometric near-infrared spectroscopy (iNIRS) platform for accurate, multi-biomarker sensing, with a clinical demonstration in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). 

This PhD will define the platform that ties the system together: a dual-wavelength SiN passive PIC, the interferometric architecture for parallel balanced coherent detection, and the algorithms that turn raw optical signals into clinically meaningful haemodynamic biomarkers. 

Key Duties & Responsibilities 

• Design a SiN passive PIC: dual-wavelength (760 & 935 nm) with < 0.5 dB/cm propagation loss. 
• Explore interferometric architectures (MZI and coherent schemes) on SiN for parallel balanced detection. 
• Explore metasurface/grating couplers for transfer-printed sources and detectors. 
• Develop iNIRS signal-processing algorithms for oxyhaemoglobin, deoxyhaemoglobin, and blood-flow index. 
• Participate in Education and Public Engagement activities.
• Ensure compliance with Tyndall’s Quality Management Systems, Health and Safety standards, and other regulations.

Indicative Research Outputs 

• Output 1 (M24): A SiN passive PIC platform for dual-wavelength iNIRS: design, fabrication, and loss characterisation at 760 & 935 nm. 
• Output 2 (M30): An interferometric architecture comparison for parallel balanced coherent detection in wearable sensing. 
• Output 3 (M42): A benchtop demonstration of the SiN-based integrated iNIRS platform: coherent interferometric detection with signal processing for haemodynamic monitoring. 

Milestones: Algorithm development (M24) · Benchtop demonstration (M36) · phantom validation (M48). 

Essential Criteria 

• Must hold a master's degree, or an equivalent qualifying degree in Physics, Semiconductor, Photonics or a related discipline to enroll in the PhD programme. 
• Strong academic background in photonics, waveguides, semiconductors, optics, electronic engineering, physics, or a related discipline. 
• Solid grounding in integrated photonics and/or optical system design. 
• Proficiency in a relevant programming/simulation language (e.g., Python, MATLAB, C++). 

Desirable Criteria 

• Experience with SiN or silicon photonics design and PIC layout. 
• Familiarity with interferometric/coherent detection and signal-processing algorithms. 
• Knowledge of biomedical optics or haemodynamic biomarker sensing. 
• Enthusiasm for translational, application-driven research with real clinical impact in digital healthcare. 
• Demonstrate a strong desire to innovate and pursue advanced research through relevant skills and project experience.  

What We Offer 

• Full PhD funding, including tuition fees and a tax-free stipend. 
• A position within Rinn Semiconductor - Ireland’s Centre for Semiconductor Innovation, working at the interface of photonics, semiconductors, and digital healthcare. 
• Access to world-class fabrication and characterisation facilities at Tyndall National Institute / UCC. 
• Cross-theme collaboration with the HET (heterogeneous integration), NET, and PACK (packaging) themes, alongside an extensive network of industry and clinical partners. 
• The opportunity to contribute to a next-generation medical diagnostic platform with direct clinical translation. 

Supervision 

• Supervisor: Biophotonics team. Co-supervisor: HET (Heterogeneous Integration) team (fabrication focus). 
• Cross-theme links: HET (fab), NET, PACK. 

Terms of Studentship 

The annual stipend is €25,000.00.  In addition, annual tuition fees will be paid by the Tyndall National Institute. 
Duration of Study: 4 years 
Informal enquiries can be made in confidence to supervisor Sanathana Konugolu

The closing date for applications for this position is rolling until it’s filled 

Application Instructions 

Please make sure to attach an up-to-date CV/Resume AND a brief motivation letter outlining how you meet the ‘Essential Criteria’ for this role. 
Postgraduate applicants whose first language is not English must provide evidence of English language proficiency as per UCC regulations (https://www.ucc.ie/en/study/comparison/english/postgraduate/). Certificates should be valid (usually less than 2 years old) and should be uploaded with their application.