Alexander Ruesch

Background

About Alexander Ruesch

I am a biomedical engineer working on diffuse optical imaging and spectroscopy of the brain and body at Carnegie Mellon University. I have a special interest in the development of non-invasive instruments and signal processing pipelines that improve healthcare and replace invasive standards. During my postdoctoral studies I am investigating the use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in marine mammals and human free divers. This includes photon propagation models to inform instrumentation design choices, signal acquisition and processing, as well as interpretation. Previously, I have developed a method to measure intracranial pressure non-invasively by means of machine learning and diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) through my PhD research. I have worked on signal processing for over 10 years, including MRI image lesion detection (MSc) and adaptive filter (BSc), with a focus on optical signals acquired by NIRS and its many variants (frequency domain and continuous wave NIRS, DCS, optical coherence spectroscopy) in the past 7 years. I have always embraced collaborative work with diverse, interdisciplinary, and international groups, which have led to fantastic research opportunities and many early morning meetings across the Atlantic. Competencies: Signal and image processing of biological signals, machine learning, light propagation modelling (NIRFASTer), diffuse optical instrumentation, multi-modal data acquisition, optical probe design, Matlab, Python, C++.