Research Fellow in the Physics of Low Resource Brain Digital Twins

UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology

Job Description

Research Fellow in the Physics of Low Resource Brain Digital Twins

Research Department

Neuroinflammation

Reports to

Director, Professor Mike Hanna

Head of Research Department, Professor Ahmed Toosy Professor Claudia Wheeler-Kingshott Research Fellow in the Physics of Low

Resource Brain Digital Twins

Line manager: Professor Claudia Wheeler-Kingshott

Context

Grade: 7

Location: Russell Square House / On-site First Structure of the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology The mission of the Department of Neuroinflammation is to transform the lives of people living with diseases underpinned by neuroinflammation, including multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease, for the better, by identifying, understanding, and correcting or preventing the underlying mechanisms.

Our vision is to build upon the excellence and breadth of our research, seamlessly integrating basic and clinical science.

The Physics group led by Professor Wheeler-Kingshott has promoted the development of quantitative

MRI to understand mechanisms of disease, especially multiple scleroses. The group has access to a 3T Philips Ingenia Cx scanner with the latest technology and develops application spanning microstructure, physiology and functional measurements in the central and peripheral nervous system. The group also collaborates strictly with the University of Pavia (Italy) where Professor Wheeler-Kingshott has a laboratory developing brain digital twins technologies to understand

changes in brain functional dynamics due to pathologies including Alzheimer, Parkinson, ataxia, schizophrenia.

Professor Wheeler-Kingshott is also involved with the international community in the effort to make

MRI accessible to all, working with ultra-low field MRI scanners in the UK, Italy and Uganda. Recently she obtained UKRI funds to develop the physics of brain digital twins with low resource technology, i.e. using ultra-low field MRI scanners and electroencephalography (EEG) for detecting brain function.

It is within this project that the current position sits.

Main purpose of the job

Your purpose of this role is to investigate the physics underpinning brain digital twins and their potential application in low-resource settings, spanning neuronal function, ultra-low-field MRI and EEG-based measures of brain activity.

Working with Postdoctoral Researcher Dr Antonio Ricciardi and Professor Wheeler-Kingshott, you will contribute to research investigating the capabilities and limitations of low-field neuroimaging technologies. You will use data acquired using the group's 3T MRI scanner alongside EEG recordings to develop and evaluate approaches for characterising brain structure and function and their integration into brain digital twin models.

The role will also provide an opportunity to develop knowledge of fast neural electrical impedance tomography (fnEIT), an emerging technology developed by Professor David Holder, and to explore its potential as an alternative or complementary approach for detecting brain function in low-resource settings.

You will work within a multidisciplinary and international research environment, contributing to the development of physics-based approaches that could enable more accessible neuroimaging and improve our understanding of neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders The post is available from 01 November 2026 and funded for one year in the first instance.

Duties and responsibilities

• Study the Physics of brain digital twins.
• Run experiments at 3T acquiring diffusion and functional imaging data for brain digital twins reconstruction.
• Become familiar with the processing pipeline to run virtual brain models.
• Establish the preprocessing pipeline for building structural connectivity and functional connectivity matrices from MRI.
• Explore the use of EEG instead of MRI for sampling brain function.
• Understand the physics of fnEIT and the potential role of it for future applications.
• Contribute to the project website updates.
• Help organising the final brain digital twins workshop in Uganda.

Teaching, research, and development

• Prepare one or two online lectures on the steps needed for brain digital twins reconstruction.
• Interact with the rest of the consortium involving Cardiff University (UK), Makerere and Mbarara Universities (Uganda) to build a community of young researchers working on this advanced topic.
• Spend a period of e.g. 3 months at one of the consortium universities to learn and develop specific skills.

• Provide teaching on topics related to your work as requested by your line manager or Head of Research Department.
• Contribute to your Department’s multidisciplinary research projects as aligned with the departmental strategy.
• Prepare and analyse data for publications for the dissemination of research and for presentation at internal meetings at UCL, meetings with external collaborators, and national and international conferences.

General

• Attend and contribute to Departmental, Institutional, and university meetings, committees, and initiatives as appropriate.
• Always act in accordance with the highest professional standards and ensure that these are maintained in the delivery of all aspects of research.
• Actively promote equality of opportunity and inclusivity, supporting policy within the remit of your role.
• Ensure the highest standard of record keeping, maintaining accurate, complete, and up-todate records.
• Ensure confidentiality is maintained as applicable.
• Follow and actively promote the UCL Ways of Working.
• Takes responsibility to carry out duties in a way that embodies UCL's environmental and social sustainability values, actively supporting objectives within the remit of your role.

UCL’s Equal Opportunity

UCL's Sustainability Strategy, policies and The above description is not exhaustive, and you will be required to undertake any other duties as may reasonably be requested within the scope, spirit, and purpose of the post.

Job descriptions are reviewed on a regular basis including at the annual appraisal. As duties and responsibilities change, the job description may be amended in consultation with the post-holder.

You will be expected to actively follow all UCL policies and procedures and complete UCL mandatory training, maintain an awareness of Fire and Health & Safety Regulations, attend meetings as required, and undertake such training and development as may be needed for the post.

All staff are required to act professionally, cooperatively, and flexibly in line with the requirements of the post and the Institute’s Code of Conduct.

Person Specification

Note to job applicant: copy and paste the following criteria into your “Statement in support of your application” and describe underneath each criteria how you meet it, giving examples. You will be scored on how you meet each criteria.

Essential Criteria

Qualifications, experience and knowledge

PhD in Physics, Mathematics, Engineering, Neuroscience or a related discipline Demonstrated experience in quantitative MRI acquisition/processing Demonstrated experience/understanding of computational modelling Experience/understanding of virtual brain modelling platforms Knowledge of machine learning/artificial intelligence applications in neuroscience Good knowledge of neuroanatomy and advanced neuroimaging analyses such as image and signal manipulation for parameter’s extraction

Skills and abilities

Strong programming skills, including Python and MATLAB Excellent oral and written communication skills Strong problem-solving abilities and the ability to quickly learn new skills Good interpersonal skills with an ability to work co-operatively in a multidisciplinary setting

Desirable Criteria

Meticulous organisational and project management skills Knowledge of confidentiality, data protection, and GDPR

Interview / Practical Test)

Interview / Practical Test)

Apply

To apply for this position visit: ucl.ac.uk/jobs Please complete the online application form and use the supporting statement section to outline your interest in joining the Physics team in the Department of Neuroinflammation, and how you meet the essential and desirable criteria for the role. Please also upload a recent CV.

If you have any queries regarding the application process, please contact the Institute HR Team, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, 23 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG (email: ion.hradmin@ucl.ac.uk).

For informal enquiries about the role please contact Professor Claudia Wheeler-Kingshott (email: c.wheeler-kingshott@ucl.ac.uk).

The post is available from 01 November 2026 and funded for one year in the first instance.

Salary

The post is graded as UCL Grade 7 with salary in the range £46,261 - £54,019 per annum, including

London Allowance.

Progression through the salary scale is incremental. Cost of living pay awards are negotiated nationally and are normally effective from 1 st August each year.

Appointment at Grade 7 is dependent upon having been awarded a PhD; if this is not the case, initial appointment will be as Research Assistant/Grade 6B (salary £39,807 - £42,891 per annum) with payment at Grade 7 being backdated to the date of final submission of the PhD thesis. It is expected that you will have had your viva prior to commencing in post.

Probation

Appointments are subject to receipt of satisfactory references and a probationary period of nine months.

Hours of work

Full time, 36.5 hours per week; times of work are as determined by the line manager or Director.

Hybrid working arrangements

The nature of this role requires you to spend most of your time working on-site (On-site First) and you are expected to spend at least 80% of your working hours on campus.

Annual leave

Annual leave is 27 working days for a full-time member of staff + 6 UCL closure days in addition to 8 Bank Holidays.

Pension

Appointments are superannuable under the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).

Other benefits

UCL is a dynamic, global university based in one of the most exciting capital cities in the world. Not only does working at UCL offer the opportunity to work with some of the greatest intellects in the world, it also offers competitive terms, conditions and benefits to its staff. In our 2025 staff survey, 95% of ION staff rate the Institute as an enjoyable place to work and over 90% feel that the Institute has a positive working culture.

As part of the UCL community you can access free lunch hour lectures, exhibitions and museums and collections. On campus UCL has the Bloomsbury theatre hosting a range of performances and a series of bars, cafes, and other facilities, which UCL staff can use.

In addition to 41 days annual leave (inclusive of public holidays and closure days) and generous pension schemes, UCL provides a number of other staff benefits.

UCL benefits and policies apply equally, whatever the sexual orientation and/or gender identity of employees. Benefits and policies relating to employees’ partners includes both different sex and same sex partners.