Neurophotonics Center
Drawing on the work of doctoral students through a $2.9 million Research Traineeship award from the National Science Foundation, the Neurophotonics Center is expected to further research using functional near-infared spectroscopy (fNIR). The fNIR scan is able to penetrate a centimeter into the brain, through the scalp and skull, to detect blood oxygenation and enable the imaging of brain function. An alternative to fMRI scans, which require patients to sit completely still, this technology is available as a wearable device that allows wearers to move around naturally while researchers observe blood flow and oxygenation changes in the brain in real time at a far lower cost.
