PhD Position in Multimedia Signal Processing at University of Lisbon

Location: Instituto de Telecomunicações, Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal

Project title: Event-based Imaging
Project description: Event-based imaging, also known as neuromorphic imaging, is a recent visual information paradigm that relies on novel sensing and computing techniques that mimic how biological systems acquire and process visual information. In this paradigm, visual sensors do not capture and transmit images/frames at fixed time intervals, but rather operate on a different principle: individual pixels asynchronously respond to changes in the amount of incident light, resulting in a stream of asynchronous events. Therefore, the obtained visual data stream is sparse which makes it suitable for scenarios where very high temporal resolutions are desirable, notably in the acquisition of fast and dynamic scenes with high accuracy and low latency. Moreover, event-based imaging can efficiently handle uncontrolled lighting conditions (e.g. high dynamic range) and low-power consumption. This new visual information paradigm may therefore potentiate several advantages in many applications, such as in industrial automation, visual surveillance, augmented reality, automotive and mobile environments, drones and other applications which require fast response, high-dynamic range or low-power consumption. 

The research work will be developed in the context of a European project with relevant French, Belgium and Swiss SMEs that work in the event-based imaging field.

Research grant: The research grant is associated with a yearly renewable contract that includes an experimental period of 6 months. The research grant consists of a tax-free stipend of 1144,64€ per month for PhD position plus tuitions. The candidates must fulfill the following conditions: 

• Have background on the relevant computer science and electrical and computer engineering areas. Preference will be given to candidates that better understand visual compression, computer vision and image processing fields. 
• Have strong motivation to perform research in a rich and stimulating research group as well as to advance state-of-the-art through the publication of results in international conferences and peer reviewed journals. 
• Be fluent in English, with good oral, technical writing and presenting skills. 
• Have good programming skills (Python, C/C++, etc.). 

Well-known researchers will supervise the selected candidate: Prof. João Ascenso and Prof. Catarina Brites (http://amalia.img.lx.it.pt/index.php/team/). The candidate will join a dynamic team of senior members and PhD students where strong research and development activities in the image coding, quality assessment and 3D visual representation fields are carried out. To apply for the research grant, please submit your application by sending an email to joao.ascenso@lx.it.pt with the following documents: 

1. Detailed curriculum vitae with transcripts (mandatory)
2. A motivation letter (research statement) explaining your interest in the position (mandatory)
3. Recommendation letter(s) or a list of individuals with contact information. 

Note that if the above documents are not received, your application may not be considered. Applications shall be received until 31/07/2023. Selected candidates will be submitted to one or more interviews. For any clarifications, please contact Prof. João Ascenso at joao.ascenso@lx.it.pt.