Research axes

Biophotonics

Biophotonics is an interdisciplinary field that focuses on the interaction between light and biological systems. It encompasses the study, development and application of optical techniques and technologies to understand, monitor, diagnose and eventually treat biological organisms. Using light-based methods, biophotonics enables information to be gathered about biological processes from the molecular and cellular scale right up to whole organisms.

The applications of biophotonics are diverse and have an impact on many different fields, including medicine, biology, physics and engineering. Biophotonics has already revolutionized life science imaging with techniques such as fluorescence microscopy, confocal microscopy and the now ubiquitous multiphoton microscopy. These methods make it possible to visualize cellular structures, molecular interactions and tissue morphology in tabletop microscopes, but also in portable microscopes, directly on live animals, in order to observe behavior in real time with high resolution, facilitating disease diagnosis and biomedical research. But biophotonics is not limited to imaging: it can also be used to diagnose and treat diseases.

The aim of this research area is to develop tools for needs ranging from the advancement of knowledge to therapeutic applications, via predictive and diagnostic tools. The research carried out here is resolutely geared towards contributing to the sustainable health and well-being of the world’s population.