Postdoctoral Researcher at the Spatial Biotechnology Research Group Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia in Spain

The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) in Barcelona is recruiting a Postdoctoral Researcher for the Spatial Biotechnology Research Group. This full-time position is centered on an exciting hybrid research profile at the interface of experimental and computational biology, with a strong emphasis on laboratory automation, spatial biology, and data-driven experimental design.

The project aims to understand how cells spatially organize to drive solid tumor development. The successful candidate will help build automated, closed-loop workflows that connect experimental planning, robot-driven execution, and analysis-guided decision making. The research combines spatial proteomics, lineage tracing, clonal barcoding, automated microscopy, and scalable perturbation experiments, with the goal of enabling a self-driving biology laboratory.

Main responsibilities include designing and validating liquid-handling workflows on an Opentrons Flex platform using Python, running spatial proteomics experiments in co-cultures, engineered 3D tumor models and tissue sections, implementing lineage tracing and debarcoding readouts, and developing computational pipelines for image processing, segmentation, debarcoding and spatial statistics. The role also involves applying design-of-experiments and active-learning strategies to guide the next rounds of experiments, ensuring reproducibility and FAIR data practices, presenting findings in meetings and conferences, contributing to manuscripts, and collaborating with colleagues across experimental and computational disciplines. The postdoc will also help support and co-supervise students working on related tasks.

Applicants must hold a PhD in life sciences, bioengineering, biotechnology, computational biology or a related field. Essential experience includes hands-on wet-lab work, Python and/or R programming, analysis of large imaging or omics datasets, and a strong interest in scalable, traceable and reproducible automation. Full professional English is required. Experience with liquid-handling robots, spatial proteomics or spatial transcriptomics, DNA barcoding, deep-learning-based image analysis, 3D culture systems, workflow managers, containers, high-performance computing, AI-assisted experimental design, and cancer biology or immunology is considered advantageous.

The appointment is a temporary, full-time contract (37.5 hours/week) with an open-ended scientific and technical activities contract linked to the project and budget duration. Salary will depend on qualifications and experience according to IBEC pay scales. IBEC also highlights a supportive research environment, family-friendly measures, training opportunities, mentoring, and active assistance for applications to external fellowships such as MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships, EMBO, HFSP, la Caixa Junior Leader, Beatriu de Pinós and Juan de la Cierva.

The deadline for applications is 16 October 2026 at 23:59 (Europe/Madrid). Applications must be submitted online through the IBEC careers portal. Reference: PR-XR.