Department Imaging Science & Technology

The department of Imaging Science & Technology is one of the six departments of the Faculty of Applied Sciences. The department consists of four research groups:

focusing on four central, departmental-wide research themes:

Biomedical Imaging
Nano-Lithography
Acoustical Imaging
Microscopy & Nanostructures

These themes represent areas of research that are essential to science, technology, industry and society and require the expertise that is available in our department.

Biomedical Imaging – Perhaps the most pervasive tool in all of medicine is imaging. It is used from screening (e.g. mammograms and prenatal examinations) to diagnostics (e.g. cardiovascular, cancer and traumatic medicine) to therapy (e.g. radiotherapy) to chronic care. It is used at both a macroscopic level (e.g. MRI) and at a microscopic level (e.g. cytogenetics and pathology). IST has more than a 30 year history in this type of work and the interest continues to grow.

Nano-lithography – Whether the next generation of “chips” will be produced by light or by electron beams, IST will be a major participant in the development of lithographic systems that work at the nanometer scale. These tools are essential and we work closely with the large industries (e.g. ASML) and the start-up industries (e.g. MAPPER) on their development. Further, we are closely involved in the development of technologies for high-density information recording.

Acoustical Imaging – Whether we like it or not, the world runs on gas and oil. To maintain our industrial and knowledge societies, we must find more sources of hydrocarbons that are suitable for energy production even as we wait for sustainable energy sources. The seismic work within IST has been trend-setting for more than a quarter of a century and we intend that it remain that way. This same expertise is also exploited in medical imaging where we expect major developments in, for example, the screening for breast cancer.

Microscopy & Nanostructures – The study and development of modern materials, modern cell biology, and modern micro-instrumentation (e.g. MEMS) requires novel high-resolution imaging devices. Within IST we are working on the development of such devices and we can consider this to be a growth field for the future.

We propose to make contributions, for example, in:

next-generation electron microscopy (CPO)
nanometer scale lithography (CPO and OP)
terahertz imaging (OP)
ultra-high density optical storage (OP)
ultra-high-resolution optical microscopy (QI and OP)
molecular and medical imaging (QI and AC)
robot vision (QI)
multi-dimensional image analysis (x,y,z,t,l) (QI)
four-dimensional seismic imaging (AC)
wave-field based sound control (AC)
non-destructive acoustic testing (AC)

The academic staff of the department is heavily involved in the bachelor and master educational program Applied Physics and Erasmus Mundus Master program Optics in Science & Technology.

The department has a leading role in Medical Delta, a research initiative that encompasses TU Delft, Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum (LUMC), Erasmus Medisch Centrum (ErasmusMC) and Leiden University.

A short overview of the research activities of IST