Research Specialist, Core Facilities – AFM/Optical Tweezers Full-time

Role Overview:

Exciting Opportunity at MSK: The Molecular Cytology Core Facility (MCCF) seeks a Research Specialist – Core Facilities to design and perform atomic force microscopy (AFM) and optical trapping experiments for pre-clinical and clinical researchers at MSKCC and neighboring institutes.

MCCF provides elite services for single-molecule biophysics and nano-mechanical characterization of biological samples for cancer research. We maintain two Asylum MFP-3D-Bio and Bruker Nanowizard V AFMs and a Lumicks C-Trap optical trapping/confocal system for quantification of single-molecule DNA/protein interactions and nano-mechanical measurements of diverse, cancer-related biological samples.

Key Qualifications:

Responsibilities:

• Advising and assisting users in optimizing sample preparation in a wide range of experimental systems from single molecules through cells and organoids to whole tissues

• Designing, performing and analyzing AFM and optical trapping experiments

• Exploring new avenues for AFM in cancer biology and developing new techniques in collaboration with users

• Promoting and expanding the use of AFM and optical trapping technologies in pre-clinical and clinical research at MSKCC

Qualifications:

• PhD in a life sciences-related field, with relevant postdoctoral experience strongly preferred

• Experience with AFM, with optical trapping experience a major plus

• Excellent communication skills and experience in working with diverse range of collaborators

• Strong organization skills and demonstrated ability to split effort between multiple projects

• Scientific maturity and ability to assure the generation of accurate and reproducible data

Core Skills:

• Expertise in Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and optical trapping, including experimental design, execution, and data analysis.
• Advanced sample preparation techniques across biological scales—from single molecules to tissues.
• Strong collaborative and communication skills to support and guide diverse research teams.
• Scientific innovation and problem-solving in developing new biophysical methods for cancer research.
• Project management and multitasking abilities to handle multiple concurrent research collaborations.

Tagged as: Life Sciences, Physics