Theme：Deep-tissue high-resolution optical focusing, imaging, and stimulation: technology and applications

Host：Dr. Puxiang Lai

Time：3rd June 2021, 16:00-17:40

Location: Room 218, Med-X Research Institute, Xuhui Campus, SJTU

Abstract: 

Light, in many ways, is an ideal form of electromagnetic waves to probe and treat biological tissues. Its applications, however, encounter an inevitable trade-off between resolution and penetration depth due to the strong scattering of light in tissue. Existing microscopic optical modalities can seldom see beyond the so-called optical diffusion limit (~1 mm for human skin). In this talk, we present our endeavors in the past 11 years to achieve high-resolution optical focusing and imaging within or through thick biological tissue or tissue-like scattering media via optical wavefront shaping and photoacoustics, respectively. We also show our preliminary results of applying wavefront shaping implementations towards smart optical focusing, deep-tissue optical imaging, edge enhancement, temporal evolutional optogenetics with single neuron precision through brain skull ， and many other applications . Further directions are also discussed.

Biography: 

Dr. Puxiang Lai received his Bachelor from Tsinghua University in 2002, Master from Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2005, and PhD from Boston University in 2011. After that, he joined Dr. Lihong Wang’s lab in Washington University in St. Louis as a Postdoctoral Research Associate. In September 2015, he joined Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University as a tenure-track Assistant Professor.
Dr. Lai’s research focuses on the synergy of light and sound as well as its applications in biomedicine, such as wavefront shaping, photoacoustic imaging, acousto-optic imaging, and computational optical imaging. His research has fueled more than 40 top journal publications, such as Nature Photonics, Nature Communications, and Advanced Sciences. He has two USA/world patents, and has been invited to give more than 50 seminars or invited talks. Since 2015, his research has been continuously supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), Hong Kong Research Grant Council (RGC), Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC), Department of Science and Technology of Guangdong Province, and Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Commission (STIC), with allocated budget of more than 14 million Hong Kong dollars.