MSCA COFUND PhD@Tec21 - PhD position in Biomechanics: Rheophysics of Biomimetic Blood Clots under Flow

id="offer-description" class="ecl-u-type-heading-2 ecl-u-mt-none ecl-u-mb-l">Offer Description Context and work environment . Blood clots are complex, dynamic and multiscale structures composed of a fibrin mesh that traps red and white blood cells. These clots typically form in veins, arteries, or organs, and especially in vein segments of the lower limbs, with sizes ranging from 200µm to several millimeters in cases of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). A critical risk arises from detachment, induced by high shear flows or to weak vessel wall adhesion, which can lead to embolism and life-threatening complications. The objective of this PhD is to experimentally investigate the deformation and rupture of polymer or hydrogel-based clot models under physiological and pathological flow conditions. The models will be fabricated to reproduce the key mechanical properties of natural blood clots, and their rheological behavior will be thoroughly characterized. A dedicated microfluidic platform will be used to subject these models to controlled shear flows, mimicking the hydrodynamic stresses encountered in vascular environments. Advanced experimental techniques will be used, including Digital Image and Volume Correlation for measuring clot deformations under rapid confocal microscopy, and Particle Image Velocimetre (PIV) or other advanced techniques to characterize the velocity fields around the clots. The resulting data will be compiled into a large database and with fluid-structure intera