PhD scholarship in Acoustic Signal Processing DTU Electro

Are you interested in developing event-driven energy-efficient methods for processing real-world acoustic signals grounded in the physics of sound and the computational principles of biological hearing

As our new colleague you will help pioneer novel applications of neuromorphic computation in acoustics. By combining spiking neural networks event-driven sensing and classical acoustic signal processing you will contribute to the development of next-generation acoustic sensing systems.

You will push the boundaries of:

• Continuous-time and sparse representations exploiting the temporal structure of acoustic fields through event-driven and spike-based encodings rather than uniformly sampled frames.
• Auditory front-ends inspired by cochlear processing and spike-based wavelet decompositions.
• Hardware realization deploying always-on low-power acoustic sensing solutions on mixed-signal and neuromorphic hardware platforms.
• Acoustic perception and scene analysis addressing challenges such as source localization detection and classification using microphone arrays under stringent power and latency constraints.

Acoustics signal processing and a curious mindset
You are fascinated by how sound carries information and how it can be processed efficiently and you have a strong interest in the mathematical and physical foundations of acoustic signal processing. You will be responsible for developing brain-inspired computational methods that open new approaches to acoustic sensing and inference.

We are looking for a profile with the motivation and drive needed for making a difference that matters. You bring an open mindset and like to create results via collaboration with people from different professional and cultural backgrounds.

You are a talented self-motivated and team-oriented person who enjoys working on the theoretical and applied foundations of acoustic machine learning.

Your CV comprises:

• Solid foundations in signal processing and applied mathematics.
• Some background in acoustics and/or acoustic signal processing (e. g. array processing time-frequency analysis source localization room or underwater acoustics).
• Experience programming machine learning models (e. g. PyTorch/Jax) and familiarity with spiking-network frameworks (e. g. snnTorch or Norse) or neuromorphic hardware is an advantage.
• An active interest in interdisciplinary work at the intersection of acoustics machine learning and neuromorphic engineering.
• You must be fluent in English both speaking and writing and possess excellent communication skills.

As part of the Danish Ph.D. program you will follow a number of Ph.D. courses as well as take part in teaching and supervision of students. The PhD further includes interesting opportunities for an external research stay.

You must have a two-year masters degree (120 ECTS points) or a similar degree with an academic level equivalent to a two-year masters degree.

Approval and Enrolment
The scholarship for the PhD degree is subject to academic approval and the candidate will be enrolled in one of the general degree programmes at DTU. For information about our enrolment requirements and the general planning of the PhD study programme please see DTUs rules for the PhD education.

Assessment
The assessment of the applicants will be made by Professor Peter Gerstoft (DTU Electro).

We offer
DTU is a leading technical university globally recognized for the excellence of its research education innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.

Salary and appointment terms
The appointment will be based on the collective agreement with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. The allowance will be agreed upon with the relevant union. The period of employment is 3 years.

The position is a full-time position starting 1 November 2026 or according to mutual agreement.

The workplace is DTU Lyngby Campus.

You can read more about career paths at DTU here.

Further information
Further information may be obtained fromProfessor Peter Gerstoft (DTU Electro)

You can read more about the Department at you are applying from abroad you may find useful information on working in Denmark and at DTU at DTU Moving to you have the option of joining our monthly free seminar PhDrelocation to Denmark and startup Zoom seminar for all questions regarding the practical matters of moving to Denmark and working as a PhD at DTU.

Application procedure
Your complete online application must be submitted no later than 14 September 2026 (23:59 Danish time).

Applications must be submitted as one PDF file containing all materials to be given consideration. To apply please open the link Apply now fill out the online application form and attach all your materials in English in one PDF file. The file must include:

• A letter motivating the application (cover letter)
• Curriculum vitae
• Grade transcripts and BSc/MSc diploma (in English) including official description of grading scale

You may apply prior to obtaining your masters degree but cannot begin before having received it.

Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

All interested candidates irrespective of age gender disability race religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply. As DTU works with research in critical technology which is subject to special rules for security and export control open-source background checks may be conducted on qualified candidates for the position.

DTU Electro
DTU Electro employs more than 300 skilled researchers with competencies in electrical and photonics engineering. As adepartmentwe strive towards creating sustainable energy anda greenerinternet as well as strengthening cyber security and health technology. Working withindustryand public organizations is one of our top priorities tofindandimplementnew solutionsto our society. We aim to offer education research and innovation of the highest standard and our focus on application-oriented research enables us to work across many engineering disciplines and research areas such as IT and the medical and health sciences. We have a close collaboration with researchers from all over the world just as we collaborate with industry and public authorities about the dissemination of solutions based on electrical andphotonicsengineering as their key enabling technologies.

DTU For the benefit of society since 1829
DTU is one of Europes leading elite technical universities. Through research and education at an international top level we create solutions to the major societal challenges of our time and help secure Europes global leadership in sustainable technological development. Since Hans Christian Ørsted founded DTU almost 200 years ago our mission has remained the same: We develop and create value through the natural and technical sciences for the benefit of society. DTU has 13800 students 1600 PhD students and 6500 employees. We work in an international environment and have an inclusive stimulating and informal work culture. DTU has campuses in all parts of Denmark and in Greenland and collaborates with the best universities around the world.