Research Scientist, All-Optical Working Memory

Astera Institute; Alameda (CA); On-site; USD 80,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Job summary

Astera Neuro, part of Astera Institute, seeks a PhD-level scientist to read, write, and perturb working memory in mouse cortex at single-cell resolution. You will design behavioral tasks, perform surgeries, and run holographic optogenetics on the all-optical platform.

The role emphasizes end-to-end experimental work, data analysis, and collaboration within a well-resourced, open-science environment.

Qualifications

• PhD required in neuroscience or related field with strong experimental skills.
• Hands-on mouse survival surgery experience with cranial windows and headbars.
• Proficiency in Python and/or MATLAB for neural-data analysis; experience with Suite2p/CaImAn.

Responsibilities

• Design and iterate rodent working-memory tasks in head-fixed mice.
• Perform two-photon holographic photostimulation and record population activity.
• Lead computational analysis of neural population data and coordinate with engineering teams.
• Mentor technicians and contribute to lab culture and hiring.
• Contribute to publications, talks, and open science tooling.

Skills

Experimental neuroscience

Experimental design

Data analysis

Education

PhD in neuroscience

Equivalent research experience

Tools

Two-photon imaging

CaImAn

Suite2p

Holographic photostimulation

Stereotaxic injections

Job description

Company Overview

Astera Neuro, part of the Astera Institute, is building the tools to decipher and ultimately write the neural codes behind perception, thought, behavior, and internal state. Since these tools don't yet exist, we're assembling a founding team of neuroscientists, computational scientists, and engineers to build them (hardware, software, and methods) and use them to study neural activity at unprecedented scale, with direct relevance to neurological and psychiatric disease. We do high-risk, high-reward science in a well-resourced, collaborative environment with competitive pay, and share our work openly under Astera's Open Science Policy.

Position Summary

We’re hiring a PhD-level scientist to join Astera Neuro’s rodent neuroscience team. Your initial assignment is to read, write, and perturb the content of working memory in mouse cortex at single-cell resolution.

The ideal candidate is an experimentalist who can carry the work end-to‑end. You can design a working‑memory task in the morning, run a closed‑loop holographic write‑in on the rig in the afternoon, and write the population‑analysis pipeline that evening. You want institutional support and the freedom to move fast on a problem that matters.

What You’ll Do

• Design and iterate a head‑fixed mouse working‑memory task, and get animals performing it reliably.
• Run two‑photon holographic photostimulation experiments: read population activity during the task, then write in and perturb the held representation at single‑cell resolution.
• Run holographic targeting, power calibration, and closed‑loop stimulation on the all‑optical rig, working with our optics engineering team.
• Lead computational analysis of large‑scale neural population data, including dimensionality reduction, population decoding, GLMs, and circuit‑level inference.
• Set the viral and transgenic expression strategy, including soma‑targeted ChRmine and GCaMP.
• Perform mouse survival surgery: stereotaxic viral injection, chronic cranial‑window implantation, and headbar installation.
• Mentor research associates and technicians and, at the senior or principal level, more junior scientists; contribute to hiring, onboarding, and lab culture.
• Contribute to publications, talks, open data and tooling releases, and engagement with the broader scientific community.

Who You Are

Required

• PhD with 0-4 years of experience in neuroscience, bioengineering, physics, or a related field, or equivalent research experience. We value demonstrated skill and relevant experience above credentials.
• Hands‑on mouse survival surgery experience: chronic cranial windows, headbars, and stereotaxic injections.
• PhD in neuroscience, bioengineering, physics, or a related field. Equivalent demonstrated expertise will also be considered.
• Hands‑on experience with in vivo two‑photon calcium imaging and/or holographic (SLM‑based) optogenetics in rodents.
• Practical experience with two‑photon systems: optical alignment, system characterization, and in vivo use.
• Proficiency in scientific computing for neural‑data analysis; Python and/or MATLAB, with Suite2p, CaImAn, or comparable pipelines.

Preferred/Nice to Have

• Experience with head‑fixed rodent behavior and task design; closed‑loop and real‑time experiments.
• Prior systems neuroscience research in cortex, working memory, decision‑making, or motor/premotor circuits.
• Experience with ultrafast pulsed lasers (Ti:Sapphire, fiber) and nonlinear optics.
• Two‑photon optogenetics (SLM‑based holography, temporal focusing, or spiral‑scanning photostimulation); soma‑targeted opsins such as ChRmine.

What We Value

• Conviction that the brain’s internal model can be understood in full, and that getting there requires a kind of science no single academic lab can do; we’re betting on scale, deep collaboration across science and engineering, and open sharing of ideas in a full‑stack environment.
• Willingness to be held to an engineering standard. Our decisive tests are write‑in experiments: constructing a specific percept, thought, or internal state, not merely decoding one. What we cannot build, we do not understand.
• Comfort building on shared infrastructure rather than private projects; rigs, surgical preparations, and analysis pipelines are standardized so they can be shared, and datasets are designed to stitch across sessions and animals.
• Care for the animals: healthy, well‑handled mice, supported by dedicated veterinary oversight, are the foundation of both the science and its credibility.
• Commitment to open science; we release tools, data, and methods, and aim to create a new dynamic of rapid, open exchange in neuroscience.

Why Join Us

Research Scientist at Astera Neuro running an all‑optical program to read, write, and perturb the content of working memory in mouse cortex at single‑cell resolution. You will design the behavioral task, perform the surgeries it depends on, and run the two‑photon holographic optogenetics that causally manipulates a held memory. This work sits within Astera Neuro’s larger effort to answer the hardest and least understood questions in neuroscience: how the brain generates thoughts, intelligence, and consciousness.

Benefits

• Astera Neuro provides a comprehensive benefits package and total compensation that is competitive and commensurate with the level of experience and qualifications.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity and inclusion!

Compensation Range: $80K - $150K