Biophotonics

Biophotonics involves the development and use of optical technologies to examine and manipulate biological systems on the sub-cellular, cellular, tissue and organ levels. The properties of photons and the systems that generate, deliver, and detect them will be the basis for much of the diagnostic, analytical, and therapeutic systems of the 21st century.

The ability to design, build and miniaturize non- and minimally-invasive systems will require a concerted interdisciplinary effort. The biomedical engineering efforts will be focused on the research and development necessary to:

• Produce the next generation of photonics-based medical devices
• Train biomedical engineers capable of spearheading such efforts

These efforts are divided into three general core areas defined by photophysical mechanisms of light interaction with biological cells and tissues:

• High-intensity interactions
• Coherent interactions
• Diffuse interactions