Biophysics is the field that applies the theories and methods of physics to understand how biological systems work.

Biophysicists are uniquely trained in the quantitative sciences of physics, math, and chemistry and they are able tackle a wide array of topics, ranging from how nerve cells communicate, to how plant cells capture light and transform it into energy, to how changes in the DNA of healthy cells can trigger their transformation into cancer cells, to so many other biological problems.

In ProDEF students can develop their capacities in research and as biophysics scientists by working with INESCTEC and IFIMUP.

In INESCTEC we have the Biomedical Imaging Laboratory and Bioinstrumentation Lab.

The Biomedical Imaging Laboratory aims at creating Computer-aided Diagnosis (CAD) tools to support medical decision making. The research activities at the Lab use several imaging modalities addressing different clinical departments including in Ophthalmology, Neurology, Radiology, Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Gastroenterology.

Location: FEUP Campus, Porto.

On the other hand, in the Bioinstrumentation Lab the main goal and focus is to perform high-level interdisciplinary R&D in engineering and computational approaches applied to health, well-being, rehabilitation and sports performance, namely crossing several areas, such as Physics. Engineering (Electronics, Computation, Signal Processing), Physiology, Physiotherapy, Psychophysics, Sports and Human Movement sciences.

Location: FEUP Campus, Porto.

Furthermore, in IFIMUP one of the three thematic vectors in their research work is Vibrational and Ultrafast Lasers and Spectroscopies for Biomedicine, which gives students an opportunity to commit to the Health and Life Sciences by working with a strong in- house expertise  aiming to develop three complementary spectroscopy techniques for biomedicine applications: i) stimulated Raman Spectroscopy (RS) with highly increased acquisition speeds compatible with present clinical practices; ii) Brillouin Scattering Spectroscopy (BSS) to probe mechanical properties in the GHz range, offering a new spectral window to study biomechanical processes; iii) Broad spectrum and high-peak power few-cycle (7 fs) lasers for real-time and multi-labeled fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy measurements. 

Location: FCUP Campus, Porto.