Subject : Effect of rhizosphere microbiota on soil properties and water dynamics.

This internship is part of a project studying how the rhizosphere microbiota of Brassica juncea (mustard) modifies soil properties to promote plant growth under water-deficit conditions [1]. Various cutting-edge technologies will be employed, including high-throughput plant phenotyping via image analysis, scanning electron microscopy, metabolomics to detect plant and microbial compounds, and nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry to evaluate water mobility and distribution in soil.
The internship mainly focuses on studying water dynamics using the Fast Field Cycling relaxometry technique [2].
The intern will be required to optimize experimental protocols, perform measurements, and proactively participate in the analysis and interpretation of results.

[1] the internship project is part of the HARMI project - ExcellencES - https://www.ubfc.fr/recherche/projets-de-recherche/harmi/

[2] Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxometry is a non-invasive technique used to characterize the dynamics of molecules in any type of matrix. This fundamental method, which provides access to a wealth of rich and varied information, has undergone a major technical boom thanks to the emergence of relaxometers. "Fast Field Cycling" -R.M. Steele, J.-P. Korb, G. Ferrante, S. Bubici, New applications and perspectives of fast field cycling NMR relaxometry: New trends in FFC NMR relaxometry, Magnetic Resonance in Chemistry. 54 (2016) 502–509. https://doi.org/10.1002/mrc.4220.

Keywords : Soil, microbiota, Relaxometry-RMN

Location : The internship will take place within the PCAV team: Food and Wine Physicochemistry, at the UMR PAM (Food and Microbiological Processes).

Candidate profile : M2 students

Application deadline : 1 January 2026

Start of internship : 12 January 2026 
Duration : 6 months.

Application file : One single PDF file containing a resume and a cover letter explaining why you are applying for this internship.