Lusófona University and the Université Bourgogne Europe are recruiting a PhD candidate for a fully-funded PhD position within the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network DECADOCS (Decadence for doctoral studies)
The successful candidate will be enrolled in a joint doctoral programme, leading to a double doctoral degree awarded by Lusofona University, Portugal, and University of Burgundy Europe, France. The candidate will be required to reside in Lisbon for the initial 24 months of the project (no later than 1 December 2025 to 31st August 2027), during which they will participate in graduate training as part of the Ph.D. in Media Arts and Communication programme and have assigned research space at the Early Visual Media Lab – CICANT. After this period, the candidate will move to Dijon to complete the next 24 months of the project and participate in graduate training as part of the Ph.D. in Physical Engineering and Microtechnology programme and develop their research at the Imaging and Artificial Vision Lab – ImViA.
PhD Project: Decadence and Haptic Virtual Reality: Testing Visual and Audio Stereoscopic Compositions
The term haptic refers to the transmission of tactile sensations through vibrations, force feedback, visual, and acoustic information. VR remains visually dominant yet sensory-limited. While most haptic studies focus on vibrations to enhance virtual interactions, more research is needed on how stereoscopic 3D and 3D sound affect user perception in VR. This PhD project focuses on the haptic potential of historical stereoscopic compositions and their application in virtual environments. It addresses two main research questions:
- Which photographic compositions historically enhanced haptic perception when viewed through stereoscopic devices?
- Can visual and audio ‘haptic compositions’ improve interaction in VR and serve as viable alternative feedback mechanisms?
Research Activities:
The successful candidate will conduct archival research and undertake secondments at two major European collections—The Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy (UK) and The Musée Nicéphore Niépce (France)—to select and analyse 100 historical stereoviews noted for their strong tactile visual effects. This analysis will focus on categorizing key visual elements such as composition, form, and texture that contribute to perceived hapticity. Building on these findings, the candidate will help develop a virtual reality environment featuring ten historically significant haptic compositions, with technical support from the Early Visual Media Lab – CICANT at Lusófona University (Portugal). To enhance user immersion, this VR space will be further enriched with 3D audio cues in collaboration with the ImViA Laboratory and the Cognitive Psychology Laboratory (LEAD) at the Université Bourgogne Europe.
Your duties:
The selected PhD candidate will be responsible for the following tasks:
Conduct Archival Research
- Conduct archival research and analyse stereoscopic materials from The Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy (UK) and The Musée Nicéphore Niépce (France), selecting a corpus of 100 still life stereoviews known for their strong haptic visual effects.
- Identify and categorise recurring « haptic compositions » while assessing their perceptual intensity.
Collaborate on Virtual Reality Development
- Design a VR environment featuring the ten most prominent historical haptic compositions, in collaboration with a programmer and designer from CICANT at Lusófona University.
Integrate Multimodal Feedback Systems
- Work with the ImViA Laboratory and Cognitive Psychology Laboratory (LEAD) at the Université Bourgogne Europe to incorporate 3D audio cues into the VR experience.
- Assist in developing and implementing a user testing protocol to evaluate immersive and tactile perception.
Produce High-Quality Research Outputs
- Develop and present a working VR haptic prototype at academic research labs and media art exhibitions.
- Prepare and submit two conference papers based on project findings.
- Write and submit a scholarly article to an open-access, peer-reviewed journal.
Engage in Network Activities
- Actively participate in DECADOCS training events, workshops, and seminars.
Organisation
The offered position will be supervised by Professor Victor Flores (Early Visual Media Lab, CICANT, Lusófona University, Portugal) and Professor Cyrille Migniot (ImViA, Université Bourgogne Europe, France).
The scientific environment in both host universities and in secondments
Lusófona University is the largest non-public university in Portugal and is organized around 10 schools that offer 40 undergraduate Degrees, 44 Master’s Degrees and 10 PhD programs. Lusófona University is the leader of FilmEU, one of the European University Alliances dedicated to the cultural and creative industries, which includes eight leading Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) across Europe. This project will be hosted by CICANT — The Centre for Research in Applied Communication, Culture, and New Technologies, an autonomous unit that is uniquely designed to harness and integrate interdisciplinary research activities of applied communications across several domains — and will be co-developed by one of its labs, the Early Visual Media Lab, dedicated to the study and mediation of old immersive media through new technologies, led by PI Victor Flores. The Early Visual Media Lab is also the publisher of the International Journal on Stereo and Immersive Media, a Scopus-indexed and open-access journal specialized in historical and new immersive media, a perfect venue for the publication of this research.
At Lusófona the PhD student will also receive specialized training in the PhD in Media Arts and Communication, namely in courses such as ‘Media Arts and Immersion’ and ‘Media Archaeology’, and will have the full support of well-equipped VR and Sound studios.
The Université Bourgogne Europe offers 400 different degrees across all levels (950 PhD students in 6 doctoral schools), employs 3,000 staff members, and enrolls 34,000 students, among whom more than 2,900 are international. The University is a member of FORTHEM alliance, a European Universities Alliance comprising 9 multidisciplinary public research universities in Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Romania and Spain.
ImViA is a laboratory working in the field of vision, embedded electronics, signal and image processing for the joint development of imaging systems and associated methods. Particular emphasis is put on the design of unconventional and multimodal vision systems, on the consideration of strong constraints on processing times and on the use of machine learning techniques in specific contexts (e.g. embedded targets, little data or explainable AI). The fields of application are vast, such as cultural heritage, health or quality control, and include quality control of manufactured products, biomedical engineering, human monitoring (activities, safety, measurement of physiological parameters) or HDR imaging.
Powerful calculation servers are available to the laboratory’s PhD students, as well as technical support for learning complex artificial intelligence networks. The doctoral school offers a wide range of training courses, such as « Introduction to virtual reality life simulation and serious gaming ».
The partnerships of this project will enable early-stage researchers to interact directly with highly prestigious historical collections of stereoscopic photography and learn directly from these objects their sensory and technological challenges.
The Brian May Archive of Stereoscopy is based in England and owns an extensive collection of Victorian stereoscopic images totalling over 200,000 photographs on metal, glass and paper, as well around 500 stereoscopes of all shapes and sizes from the 1850s to the 1970s. This collection is curated by Denis Pellerin, a photo-historian who has written several articles and books on stereo photography, as well as curated several exhibitions and events on stereoscopy. On the other hand, the partnership with the Nicéphore Niépce Museum, located in Chalon-sur-Saône, France, will allow contact with over 100,000 stereoviews, both on glass and on paper, from 1840 to 1960. The research on these two collections will also allow the consultation of several historical publications (books, newspapers, magazines, leaflets) that can contribute to the understanding of stereoscopy as a unique Victorian cultural phenomenon.
Requirements
Essential:
- Experience or strong interest in stereoscopic media, photography, or visual culture, ideally with knowledge of historical image archives or photographic collections.
- Basic familiarity with VR or immersive technologies—not necessarily technical mastery, but an understanding of their application in research or creative contexts.
- Interest in multimodal experiences.
- Solid programming experience.
- Strong analytical and critical skills for categorising and interpreting visual materials.
- Good communication and collaboration skills to work across disciplines (media, psychology, technology) and with external partners (e.g. archives, labs).
- Proficiency in academic writing and research dissemination—e.g., papers, presentations, articles.
- Availability to work in Lisbon and Dijon.
- Excellent written and spoken English
Desirable:
- Prior research or project work involving:
- Archives or image-based collections
- VR/AR environments
- Sensory studies or affective computing
- 3D audio or spatial sound design
- Experience working in collaborative or interdisciplinary research settings
- Familiarity with digital tools for media analysis, interaction design, or 3D modelling
Benefits
The European Commission provides support for each recruited researcher in the form of
- a living allowance
- a mobility allowance
- if applicable, family, long-term leave and special needs allowances
ELIGIBILITY:
Researchers funded by MSCA Doctoral Networks
- must not have a doctoral degree at the date of their recruitment
- can be of any nationality
- should be enrolled in a doctoral programme during the project
- should comply with the mobility rules: in general, they must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the recruiting organisation for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment date
Where to apply and what to send:
- a cover letter stating your motivation to apply for the position and your key competencies relevant for this position
- an up-to-date CV, including details of your BA and MA degrees
- copies of your diplomas and transcripts of records (BA and MA)
- contact information of two academic references
- evidence of proficiency in academic English (a sample of academic writing from your MA)
- the names and contact details of two referees
- a sample of academic writing
- proof of ID (passport, identity card);
- a declaration of Honour stating that you fulfil the eligibility criteria.
Our selection procedure is merit-based and follows the guidelines of the recruitment of European Commission’s European Code of Conduct for researchers:
Please send your application through EURAXESS. Applications will be received until 20 October 2025.