Background: Optical sensing for healthcare and agrofoodSensors measure physical, chemical or biological parameters that are critical to humans and to the environment - for example to diagnose diseases or to monitor plant growth. In particular, light can be used to sense many important quantities non-invasively and optical sensing has become a very active research field. Our group has recently developed an
integrated spectral sensor which uses nanophotonic detectors to measure the properties of materials from their spectrum. This technology is now being commercialized by our spin-off
MantiSpectra. In the framework of a very large
national photonics initiative, we intend to further develop this sensor technology and demonstrate its potential in the healthcare and agrofood application domains.
Project descriptionSeveral PhD studentships will be available starting from the spring 2023. The selected candidates will perform cutting-edge applied research in optical sensing. The available projects range from the design and fabrication of spectral sensors with greatly improved characteristics, to their application to the detection of molecular biomarkers for the diagnosis of diseases.
The projects will be supervised by Prof. A. Fiore, in collaboration with other research groups and companies active in the healthcare and agrofood areas. The PhD students will be integrated in a young, dynamic and highly collaborative team active in this area.