PhD Diurnal light exposure day-active persons: Optimizing performance with light

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label Burse autorenew 2025-09-29, 17:01 history_edu Silviu Marinescu
The Department of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences (IE&IS) has several BSc and MSc programmes housed in two separate schools. The School of Innovation Sciences focuses on the development and use of new technologies in a broad societal context. Research is multi-disciplinary, based on fundamental scientific insights and methods. Main areas of interest are economics and sociology of technological developments, sustainable innovation policy, human-technology interaction, and the history and philosophy of technology.

The Human-Technology Interaction (HTI) group concentrates expertise in both social sciences - in particular psychology - and engineering, studying technology in the service of human wellbeing, within the broader context of a socially and ecologically sustainable society.

The Intelligent Lighting Institute (ILI) is TU/e’s interdepartmental institute for innovations in lighting. It was established in 2010 and is home to multidisciplinary research around novel intelligent lighting solutions, with a special emphasis on how these new solutions might affect people. In addition, ILI aims at providing scientific evidence for the claims that go with these novel lighting solutions.



Project description

Vitality and self-regulation are central to human wellbeing, health and performance: these phenomena help us plan ahead, decide wisely, control impulses, and show vigilance. In turn, this has a positive influence on educational success, physical health, strong social relationships, and a successful career. Importantly, recent research has demonstrated that vitality and self-regulation are sensitive to bright light exposure, even during daytime, when natural light levels are already relatively high.

The goal of the present project is to further our understanding of the role of diurnal (daytime) light in alertness and vitality. This includes the role of both image-forming and non-image forming pathways through which light may impact mental performance. To this end, the candidate will be expected to design and perform experimental lab-based studies to investigate the required dosage, spectrum, duration and timing of diurnal light exposure for optimal functioning, taking into account direct, delayed, as well as long-term effects of light. Additionally, he or she will be expected to assess these effects of light in two field studies, utilising ecologically valid measures.