PhD Position Biosensing and Designing for Temporal and Biofabricated Textile Experiences

Join TU Delft and the Horizon Europe project INTERWeuVEN to explore how people experience temporal and biofabricated textiles through biosensing, user studies, and Material-Driven Design.

Job description

Our bodies are in constant dialogue with the textiles we wear. But what happens when textiles are no longer static, when they move, respond, grow, and change over time?

This PhD project investigates human experiences of animated textiles, including biofabricated materials and garments that evolve through morphing structures or embedded living organisms. How do we experience such materials against our skin? How do they change in response to our movements and bodily inputs? And what do these dynamic, evolving interactions mean for our wellbeing?

You will develop a novel methodology that combines Materials Experience thinking with biosensing, together with a toolkit, including a sensor-based system, for studying human-material experiences with temporal and biofabricated textiles. You will then apply this methodology and toolkit in user studies to investigate how people perceive, interact with, and adapt to dynamic textile materials over time, advancing methods for studying embodied interactions with emerging material technologies.

As a PhD candidate, you will join the Materialising Futures section within the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at TU Delft. Your project will build upon internationally recognised research in Material-Driven Design, Biodesign, Materials Experience, and Temporal and Experiential Characterization of Materials, developed within the research group. You will further expand this body of work by generating new knowledge, methods, and tools, with particular attention to the relationships between material affordances and temporalities, bodily interactions, emotional responses, and human wellbeing. In doing so, you will contribute to advancing material experience approaches for future regenerative textile systems.

This PhD is part of the Horizon Europe project INTERWeuVEN, which explores new approaches to textile design and manufacturing through interdisciplinary collaboration between academic and industrial partners. As a PhD candidate, you will work with 16 academic and industrial partners across Europe and Canada, including lululemon athletica, alongside researchers and practitioners from the wider INTERWeuVEN consortium.

You will work both independently and collaboratively on research tasks, including but not limited to:

• Developing and applying methods and tools for studying embodied human-textile/material experience.
• Developing material samples and wearable prototypes.
• Designing and conducting user studies.
• Collecting, processing, and analysing physiological and experiential data to understand human-textile/material experiences.
• Translating research findings into design guidelines and actionable recommendations for the development of materials, products, production systems, and/or digital design tools.

Job requirements

We are looking for a candidate who has:

• A Master's degree in Design, Design Engineering, Industrial Design, Product Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Science, or a related field.
• Proven experience with, or a strong interest in, sensor-based system development, biosensing technologies, physiological measurement, and data collection, including but not limited to approaches such as affective computing and emotion recognition.
• A strong interest in the intersections between materials, the body, and technology, including but not limited to approaches such as materials experience thinking and soma design.
• A combination of technical inventiveness, analytical thinking, and a strong design research sensibility, with proven experience in prototyping and/or user research.
• A strong motivation to conduct academic research and publish in peer-reviewed venues.
• Fluency in English and enthusiasm for working in an international research environment.

The following qualifications are considered an advantage:

• Experience with adaptive or responsive textiles, garment design, or wearable design.
• Experience with biofabrication, biodesign, or bio-based materials.

TU Delft

At TU Delft, you will join an international research environment with opportunities to take initiative, collaborate with others, and grow as a professional.

Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering

The Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering focuses on bridging advances in technology with the needs of people, organisations, and society to create products, services, and systems with purpose.

IDE is a leader in design research across mobility, sustainability, and health, as well as in the development of design tools and methods. A 350-strong research team and over 2,000 students work together in halls, labs, and studios.

Conditions of employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1.5-year contract includes an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months, followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2.5 years assuming performance requirements are met.

As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff, and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related, and research skills.

TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.