Software Developer - Cloud-Based MRI Reconstruction Pipeline

University of Iowa; Iowa City (IA); On-site; USD 18,720 - 22,880; Part time

Job summary

The Lingala Lab in Biomedical Engineering and Radiology at the University of Iowa, collaborating with Champaign Imaging, seeks a software developer to containerize a vendor-neutral, cloud-capable MRI reconstruction pipeline. The role centers on Dockerized Gadgetron-based workflows and Tyger-driven cloud execution, with NIH funding support.

The position is a temporary part-time staff role (1 year, possible extension) paying $20/hr for 20 hours per week, primarily on-site at the MRRF in Iowa City,

Qualifications

• Strong programming background in Python and/or C++.
• Hands-on experience with Docker (building images, Dockerfiles, running containers).
• Familiarity with cloud computing concepts and registries; Azure/AWS/GCP experience a plus.
• Experience with Linux server administration and CI/CD pipelines.

Responsibilities

• Get up to speed on Gadgetron and its gadget pipeline architecture.
• Package Gadgetron and custom reconstruction code into a Docker container that runs locally and in the cloud.
• Push containers to a registry and configure Tyger to run them as cloud jobs.
• Benchmark compute time vs. data transfer time across local and cloud execution.
• Document setup for reproducibility across GE MRI scanners at the MRRF.

Skills

Python

C++

CI/CD

Linux

Education

MS student in Computer Science / Computer Engineering

Tools

Docker

Gadgetron

Tyger

Job description

Software Developer - Cloud-Based MRI Reconstruction Pipeline

The Lingala Lab in Biomedical Engineering and Radiology, in collaboration with Champaign Imaging, is seeking a motivated software developer (temporary professional staff role or MS student in Computer Science / Computer Engineering / Electrical & Computer Engineering to help build a vendor-neutral, cloud-capable MRI image reconstruction pipeline. This project is funded through NIH. This is a hands‑on systems/software role for someone who wants real exposure to medical imaging infrastructure without needing an MRI physics background.

The core idea: our lab acquires raw Fourier‑space MRI data on GE scanners at the Magnetic Resonance Research Facility, and our current reconstructions are typically tied to vendor‑specific on‑scanner software or custom off‑line in‑lab software. We want to decouple reconstruction from the scanner by containerizing our pipeline with Docker, running it through the open‑source reconstruction engines, and deploying it both locally and to the cloud using Microsoft's Tyger framework (https://microsoft.github.io/tyger/). This mirrors a recently published approach where a research group containerized their reconstruction pipeline with Gadgetron, pushed it to a registry, and used Tyger to run it as a cloud job – while carefully benchmarking compute time vs. data‑transfer time between local and cloud execution.

Job Responsibilities

• Get up to speed on Gadgetron (the open‑source, vendor‑neutral MRI reconstruction engine we're standardizing on) and its "gadget" pipeline architecture.
• Package Gadgetron (plus our custom reconstruction code) into a Docker container that runs identically locally and in the cloud.
• Push containers to a registry and set up Tyger to pull and run them as cloud jobs – starting from Tyger's own demos to learn the submit run retrieve workflow, then moving to our real scanner datasets.
• Benchmark and quantify the pipeline: separate compute time (actual reconstruction) from data transfer time (raw data up, images back down), and compare local vs. cloud execution.
• Work directly with our team to eventually route custom, lab‑developed reconstruction algorithms through this pipeline instead of as one‑off standalone scripts.
• Document the setup so it's reproducible across our GE MRI scanners at the MRRF.
• This position collaborates with Dr. Sajan Lingala (BME, Radiology), Dr. Jim Holmes (Radiology, BME), Collaborators at Champaign Imaging, and other student/post‑docs within MRRF.

Required

• Strong programming background (Python and/or C++); comfortable reading and modifying existing open‑source codebases.
• Hands‑on experience with Docker (building images, writing Dockerfiles, running containers).
• Familiarity with cloud computing concepts (job submission, registries, YAML‑based configuration) – direct Azure/AWS/GCP experience is a plus but not required.
• Experience with Linux server administration and continuous integration/continuous deployment pipelines.
• Comfortable working semi‑independently, reading technical documentation (including reading actual source code / GitHub repos), and iterating.

Desirable

• Coursework or interest in signal/image processing.
• Prior exposure to MRI, medical imaging

No MRI or medical imaging background is required – we will train you on the domain‑specific parts. We are primarily looking for strong software engineering fundamentals and genuine interest in systems/infrastructure work.

Position details

• Temporary part-time professional position
• Duration: 1 year, with possible 1-year extension.
• Salary: 20$/hr; 20hours a week;
• Location: University of Iowa MRRF / BME, Iowa City, IA. Primarily in‑person (with on‑scanner work), with some remote‑friendly development work possible.

Contact: SAJAN GOUD LINGALA Email: [e-mail]

Ad Start Date: 07/22/2026

Ad End Date: 08/21/2026