Credit: Advanced X-Ray Imaging (AXIm) Group, UCL
APRIL 2025
Speaker: Alessandro Olivo
(Dept. of Medical Physics & Biomedical Engineering, University College London)
X-Ray imaging is 130 years old. However, despite significant innovation in detector development and CT scanners, the underpinning physical principle has not changed since Röntgen’s discovery: features are detected based on their x-ray attenuation difference against the background they’re immersed in. This is the key limitation of x-ray imaging and e.g. the reason why it is considered to have “limited soft tissue sensitivity”, an area where MRI is used instead. The same limitation affects many other application areas, in a sense defining where x-rays can and cannot be used.
However, all x-rays undergo very tiny (microradian) deviations upon traversing a sample, the only exception being those extremely rare samples that are completely homogeneous on the microscopic scale. Conventional x-ray imaging systems are insensitive to this phenomenon: x-rays that have deviated by a few microradians are simply considered “primaries”, i.e. x-rays that have not interacted with the sample. Instead, if properly analysed, these “micro-deviated” x-rays can reveal a lot of information on the sample they have traversed. This allows the detection of features classically considered “x-ray invisible”, redefining x-rays’ areas of applicability.
In this seminar, I will discuss how lab systems can be built that are sensitive to these microscopic deviations and present a series of applications in medicine, security, biology and materials science.
DECEMBER 2024
Join us on the 19th of December, from 14:30 to 17:00
Room C412 - Dip. Fisica e Sc. della Terra
Polo Scientifico Tecnologico
Two seminar will showcase the training, practice, and research of medical physicist specialists working in clinics.
SEPTEMBER 2024
Explore the many research activities carried out at Ferrara University by visiting the exhibits in Piazza Castello on the 17th of September, from 18:00 to 24:00
Look out for our stands, to learn about Spectral X-ray imaging and Medipix4 technology and innovative wearable sensors for cardiovascular function assessment.
JUNE 2024 (updated: AUGUST 2024)
A practical challenge to be solved: which physical principle can be turned into clinical reality, and when?
The new edition of EUTEMPE-net course MP04 will be held in Ferrara in September 2024 Postponed to 9-11 June 2025.
The latest progress in spectral and phase imaging, photon-counting technologies and computational methods applied to clinical radiology (AI and radiomics, in-silico virtual clinical trials) will be addressed by a distinguished team of Physicists, leaders in their respective research fields, experienced MPEs and Radiologists involved in the clinical research.
Start online course: September 1, 2024 May 2025
Face-to-face course: September 23, 2024 - September 25, 2024 9-11 June 2025
A new call for registration and the updated course program will be available from September 2024, stay tuned!
MAY 2024
See the complete call (CLOSED CALL - deadline 10 JUNE 2024)
Don't hesitate to contact us to discuss a possible research project for your PhD in medical Physics at Ferrara University
MARCH 2024
🎓🎓🎓 Congratulations to Matteo, Jacopo and Vittoria for their recent Master's degrees in Physics with flying colors at Ferrara University!
📖 Their thesis works spanned from applying A.I. for breast cancer detection to developing new detectors for spectral X-ray imaging and studying noise-reduction algorithms for clinical subtraction angiography systems.
🗃️ Have a look at the complete list of the thesis works by our graduate students in the field of medical Physics!
FEBRUARY 2024
FEBRUARY 2024
Prof. Taibi was among the guests of honor at the celebration for the "Scientific Culture Week", held at Liceo Scientifico, Linguistico e Sportivo“Leonardo” in Agrigento, Italy.
Here is the news report including the guests interviews for the local television (in Italian):
DECEMBER 2023
Wednesday 20th of December, 15:45 - room C412, Physics and Earth Science Department
Speaker: Dr. Francesco Romano (INFN - Catania, Italy and Particle Therapy Research Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands)
Wednesday 6th of December we had the pleasure to host two interesting lectures on Medical imaging by our guests Dr. Antonio Sarno (Università and INFN Napoli) and Prof. Alberto Del Guerra (University and INFN Pisa).
The abstract of the two seminars can be found at the following link:
https://agenda.infn.it/event/34029/
and here is an interesting article by Prof. Del Guerra regarding the history of Medical Physics (in Italian).
A nice picture of (most of) the participants 😃:
MAY 2023
Paolo Cardarelli will try to answer these questions and tell about an innovative technology that could revolutionize X-ray diagnostics in the near future
Save the date! 23 May 2023 - 7 PM @ Clandestino Salamanca, Via Ragno 50, Ferrara
JUNE 2022
The international Medipix Collaboration gathered in Ferrara for one of its periodic meetings on 23-24 June 2022.
The goal of the Collaboration is the development of integrated circuits suitable for the realization of hybrid pixel detectors for the measurement of particles and radiation with photon-counting and spectroscopic capabilities. The Medical Physics group of Ferrara is involved in the study of possible applications in the medical field, in particular of X-ray imaging, and for the characterization of materials.
The speech at Expo Dubai by Professor Angelo Taibi, concerns the collaboration between the Medical Physics group and the Vascular Disease Center. The project, funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), made it possible to develop a portable and non-invasive plethysmographic device to study the cerebral venous return in conditions of microgravity.
Webinar: "Beyond X-ray tubes: Innovation in radiological imaging with monochromatic sources" 11/05/2021 Speaker: Paolo Cardarelli
Masterclass: "Emerging technologies and challenges for future radiological applications" 25/05/2021 Speakers: Angelo Taibi and Paolo Cardarelli
Webinar and masterclass video recordings will be permanently accessible via EFOMP's elearning platform
Sonographic contest supervision, at the 10th International Interuniversity Meeting in Phlebology, Lymphology and Aesthetics, organized by the v-WIN Foundation, February 3-5, 2022 in Dubai, UAE