The Kirchhoff-Institut für Physik at the Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg (Germany) has an immediate opening for a

    PhD Position in Brain-Inspired Computing (Theory)

    The position is located in the Electronic Vision(s) Lab of Prof. Karlheinz Meier. The group develops large-scale hardware for brain-inspired computing and investigates novel theoretical paradigms of neural computation.

    The Heidelberg group works on the development of brain-inspired electronic circuits, so-called neuromorphic systems. These systems implement physical models of neurons and synapses in-silico, with fully configurable parameters and connectivity. Throughout a series of international projects, the hardware systems have evolved from single chips to wafer-scale devices with hundreds of thousands of neurons (Schemmel et al., 2010) and are planned to be further scaled up in the framework of the EU Human Brain project (HBP). The configurability of these systems fosters their use as general-purpose emulation devices for neuroscientific research (Pfeil et al., 2013). Their intrinsic parallelism, low power consumption and high acceleration sets them apart from conventional computing architectures. The heterogeneity of neuromorphic substrates requires novel theoretical approaches (Petrovici et al., 2014). The Heidelberg group is also involved in theoretical research and modeling of spike-based computational principles. In particular, the use of stochasticity for Bayesian inference is a major focus. These models provide useful architectures for machine learning, while at the same time advancing the study of possible computational paradigms in the mammalian neocortex (Petrovici et al., 2013).

    The successful candidate will join the theory and modeling section of the group in developing new stochastic models that exploit the heterogeneity of the hardware substrate, thereby benefitting from its significant speed advantage over conventional simulators.

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    Candidates are expected to hold a Masters degree or equivalent in Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science or a related discipline. Knowledge in neuroscience is not required but would be an advantage. The candidates should have a deep interest in theoretical and computational neuroscience, as well as excellent mathematical abilities. An important part of their work will consist in acquiring new skills from various fields of neuroscience, as required by the interdisciplinary nature of the research topic. The successful candidates will use complex simulation software and are therefore required to have very good programming skills.

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    Applications should addressed to Prof. Karlheinz Meier (meierk@kip.uni-heidelberg.de) and Mihai Petrovici (mpedro@kip.uni-heidelberg.de) including the following information in a single pdf-file :

    - Statement of research
    - CV
    - Two names (with email addresses) of suggested referees
    - Copies of university degrees and additional certificates
    - URLs of master /diploma) thesis and related publications