3 credits
Fall 2026 Lecture Distance Learning Upper Division
This gateway course teaches the physics, engineering techniques associated with modern imaging and diagnostic tools for biological and medical applications. The course covers fundamental principles of radiology, optics, contrast generation (including genetically encoded probes and physiological indicators), image formation, detection, and analysis. The specific biomedical imaging modalities covered include: x-ray, computed tomography, nuclear medicine imaging, ultrasound, optical microscopy and tomography, and MRI. The specific biological microscopy modalities covered include: phase contrast, DIC, confocal microscopy, two-photon microscopy and super-resolution microscopy. The course also teaches the principle concepts of adaptive optics, light sheet microscopy, 4Pi microscopy, and modern super-resolution microscopy techniques (PALM/STORM, STED and ISM). To bridge the technology and physics with the latest diagnostic advances and biomedical discoveries, research progresses in specific biomedical applications are presented by leading experts in their respective biomedical field such as OCT, ultrasound, MRI, fluorescence microscopy, electron microscopy, concurrent MRI and optical functional imaging, and super-resolution fluorescence microscopy. This course also includes a crash sub-course on MATLAB programming including both introductory content and contents of MATLAB-C API and MATLAB-C-CUDA (GPU computing).
Learning Outcomes1Describe fundamental principles, such as atomic structure, particle and tissue interactions, light and sound propagation, Huygen's principle, refraction, interference, diffraction and abbe's fundamental resolution limit, wave propagation of light and sound, Fresnel and Fraunhofer diffraction principles.
2Describe the general concept of signal detection, principles of detectors, noise sources and leading development trend of detectors such as APD, PMT, CCD, CMOS, EMCCD and sCMOS.
3Describe physical principles and considerations of instrumentation design in planar radiography, fluoroscopy, computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography (PET), single photon emission computed tomography, ultrasound imaging and magnetic resonance imaging.
4Understand, design and draw basic optical sketches for a simplified imaging system in either wide-field, or focused optical geometry. These imaging systems includes: Widefield, Phase Contrast, DIC, Confocal, Two photon, Adaptive optics (AO) two photon, 4Pi, I5M, SIM, RESOLFT, STED and PALM/STORM microscopy techniques.
Restrictions
made by Purdue students.