The main direction of the Biophotonics laboratory (Principal Investigator: Prof. Vadim Backman) is the development of novel optical spectral and imaging techniques for non-invasive screening, diagnosis and detection of disease as well as characterization of biological and bioengineered tissue.  Our research spans from basic physics of light scattering to the development of novel optical diagnostic techniques to the development of clinical instrumentation and to multi-patient clinical trials. 

Our key areas of research are as follows:

• Optical colonoscopy-free screening of early colon cancer.  
• Optical screening of pancreatic cancer.
• Development of enhanced backscattering spectroscopy for tissue diagnosis.
• Optical molecular imaging of tissue.
• Analysis of nano/micro-architecture of tissue and its alteration in the pre-dysplastic stage of carcinogenesis by means of elastic light scattering spectroscopy.
• Understanding alterations of microcirculation in the initial stages of colon carcinogenesis.
• Spectroscopic non-invasive assessment of biomaterials and bioengineered tissues.
• Optical detection and characterization of nanostructures with sub-nanometer accuracy.
• Modeling of elastic light scattering in turbid media.