Internship – Physically Based Rendering, Vulkan & Digital Twins

ZEISS; Oberkochen; Hybrid; EUR 13,000 - 20,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Mentorship by PhD-level experts

Hybrid remote/on-site work

Opportunity to continue as working-stu

Bachelor/Master thesis option

Modern graphics hardware access

Job summary

ZEISS is seeking motivated students to contribute to the development of an in-house physically based rendering platform for digital twins. You will work on GPU-accelerated rendering, PBR materials, and shader pipelines while collaborating with researchers and engineers.

Open opportunities include mentorship, access to modern graphics hardware, and the possibility to continue as a working student for up to two years or to write your bachelor or master thesis.

Qualifications

• Currently enrolled in Computer Science, Visual Computing, or a related field.
• Strong C++ programming and software fundamentals.
• Solid graphics knowledge: rendering pipelines, shaders, lighting.
• Interest in real-time rendering, PBR, and digital twins.

Responsibilities

• Develop GPU-accelerated rendering features with Vulkan.
• Implement physically based rendering (PBR) and material models.
• Design shader pipelines using Slang and modern graphics APIs.
• Investigate ray tracing, global illumination, and real-time lighting.
• Develop prototypes and demonstrators for visual digital twin applications.
• Run experiments, benchmark performance, and evaluate rendering quality.
• Collaborate with researchers and engineers to integrate new technologies.
• Present your work and contribute to technology evaluations.

Skills

C++ programming

Graphics concepts

Vulkan

Slang

CUDA

Neural rendering

English communication

Independence & teamwork

Education

Enrollment in Computer Science/Visual Computing or related field

Tools

Vulkan

Slang

CUDA

Job description

Shape the Future of Digital Twin Technology at ZEISSAt ZEISS Corporate Research, we explore breakthrough technologies that shape future generations of ZEISS products. We are looking for motivated students who are passionate about computer graphics, GPU programming, visual computing, and digital twins to contribute to the development of an in-house physically based rendering platform. You will work on realistic rendering and physics-based simulation technologies that enable highly interactive visual digital twins for future ZEISS applications.

Your Role

• Developing and extending GPU-accelerated rendering features using Vulkan
• Implementing physically based rendering (PBR) and material models
• Designing and optimizing shader pipelines using Slang and modern graphics APIs
• Investigating advanced rendering techniques such as ray tracing, global illumination, and real-time lighting
• Developing prototypes and demonstrators for visual digital twin applications
• Running experiments, benchmarking performance, and evaluating rendering quality
• Collaborating closely with researchers and engineers to integrate new technologies into ongoing projects
• Presenting your work and contributing to technology evaluations

What We Offer

• Work on cutting-edge rendering and digital twin technologies
• Mentorship by experienced researchers and PhD-level experts
• Opportunity to influence future ZEISS products and technology roadmaps
• Access to modern graphics hardware and research environments
• Possibility to continue as a working student for up to two years and/or write your bachelor or master thesis
• Flexible working arrangements with a mix of remote and on-site work

Your Profile

• Enrolled in Computer Science, Visual Computing, Computer Graphics, Computational Engineering, Physics, or a related field
• Strong programming skills in C++ and software engineering fundamentals
• Solid understanding of computer graphics concepts such as rendering pipelines, shaders, lighting, materials, or GPU programming
• Interest in real-time rendering, physically based rendering, ray tracing, digital twins, simulation, or graphics systems
• Experience with Vulkan, Slang, or CUDA or related technologies is beneficial
• Experience with neural rendering techniques such as Gaussian splatting is beneficial
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in interdisciplinary teams
• Good English communication skills

Nice to Have

• Personal rendering projects
• Graphics-related coursework
• Open-source contributions
• GitHub portfolio or demo projects
• Students who have built their own rendering engine, game engine components, GPU applications, shaders, or graphics research prototypes are especially encouraged to apply.