People – LITMUS | University of Waterloo

Alfred C. H. Yu, Principal Investigator

alfred.yu@uwaterloo.ca

Alfred has a long-standing research interest in ultrasound imaging and therapeutics. He is a Professor at UW (ECE and Applied Math) and is the Director of NSERC CREATE Program on Next-Generation Innovations in Ultrasonics (N-GENIUS). He is an NSERC Steacie Fellow and an AIUM Fellow. His research is recognized by various prestigious prizes, including the IEEE Ultrasonics Early Career Investigator Award, the Frederic Lizzi Award, and the Ontario Early Researcher Award. He is now the Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, & Frequency Control, the Program Chair of 2023 IEEE Ultrasonics Symposium, and the Secretary of AIUM Basic Science & Instrumentation Community. He has also previously chaired the Medical Ultrasound Group of the IEEE Ultrasonics Symposium and ISTU Education Committee, and has served as an Associate Editor of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology.

Adrian J. Y. Chee, Research Assistant Professor

adrian.chee@uwaterloo.ca

Adrian’s research specializes on the design of new vascular ultrasound techniques and related experimental tools. He is also the group’s de-facto lab manager. A globe trotter, Adrian obtained his B.Eng. degree in Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, and received his Ph.D. training at the University of Hong Kong. He also completed a research internship at Hitachi Central Research Laboratory in Tokyo, Japan.

Hassan Nahas, Research Assistant Professor

hassan.nahas@uwaterloo.ca

Hassan graduated from New York University with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and with highest distinction (summa cum laude). With an affinity to biomedical engineering and signal processing, Hassan has completed his PhD studies at the University of Waterloo, and has now joined the lab as a research staff. His main research interests are in next-generation ultrasound flow imaging techniques. He is also actively investigating the applicability of deep learning in medical ultrasound. Before joining LITMUS, he has enjoyed multiple spells as an undergraduate research assistant in projects related to biofilms, DNA microarray technology, Doppler ultrasound, and indoor localisation.

Di Xiao, Associate Scientist

di.xiao@uwaterloo.ca

Di has a strong research interest in different forms of medical imaging. He completed his undergraduate degree in Mathematics at the University of California - Berkeley, where he worked on Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI) research, and his masters degree in Electrical Engineering at the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, where he focused on MRI research. Afterwards, he worked at the IBM Toronto Software Lab. With a background in hardware, software, and mathematics, Di is looking forward to integrating his expertise to the field of ultrasound imaging.

Richard Shangguan, Post Doctoral Fellow

hanyue.shangguan@uwaterloo.ca

Richard obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Material Science Engineering at the University of Toronto in 2016. He gained initial experience in working with microbubbles during his undergraduate capstone project. He is now seeking to develop new biomedical ultrasound applications of these contrast agents as his research direction in graduate studies at the University of Waterloo.

Jason Hsu, Post Doctoral Fellow

jason.hsu@uwaterloo.ca

Jason obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering at Chang Gung University, Taiwan, where he acquired his first experience with biomedical engineering. He then completed a master’s degree in communications engineering at National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan. Jason’s ongoing passion in biomedical engineering has led him to LITMUS, where he seeks to explore new applications of biomedical ultrasound imaging.

Robyn Klassen, PhD Candidate

robyn.klassen@uwaterloo.ca

Robyn has long been eager to improve the quality of life and care of patients by developing new therapeutic technologies. To that end, she received her BASc degree with distinction in 2020 as part of the University of Waterloo’s new Biomedical Engineering program. During this time, she was captivated by the prospect of using ultrasound and microbubbles for localized drug delivery, joining LITMUS to pursue her interest in understanding fundamental cell-bubble interactions. Robyn brings with her a diverse research background, including the development of new digital microfluidic manufacturing processes at Nicoya, and the evaluation of a low-resource medical instrument sanitization device for her capstone project.

Pat de la Torre, PhD Candidate

pat.delatorre@uwaterloo.ca

A former math Olympian, Pat obtained his Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering (Honorable Mention with Excellence) at Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, Mexico. He first joined LITMUS as a research assistant in summer of 2019 through the Mitacs Globalink Research Internship program. After experiencing various biomedical research groups working on projects related to biochemistry, 3-D mechanical modeling, and electrochemistry, Pat decided to return to LITMUS to further pursue his passion to explore the novel applications of ultrasound imaging.

Chris Kallweit, PhD Candidate

chris.kallweit@uwaterloo.ca

Chris originally started his post-secondary experience at Conestoga College, where he completed the Electrical Engineering Technologist program, finishing with High Distinction. After completing his diploma, he continued to upgrade his education at Lakehead University, where he completed his Bachelor’s in Engineering with First Class Standing. During his undergrad at Lakehead, Chris first became exposed to biomedical engineering as part of his final year degree project, where he worked with Radialis Medical towards creating a Bias Voltage control system for Silicon Photomultipliers used in Positron Emission Tomography applications. Realizing the strong connection between electrical and biomedical engineering, Chris decided to pursue graduate studies to further his knowledge in both fields.

Euan Gardner, PhD Candidate

euan.gardner@uwaterloo.ca

Euan initially obtained his BSc Honours (First Class) in Psychology where he first took an interest in statistics and programming. He then completed an MSc in Human Cognitive Neuropsychology, leveraging Python and deep learningto to analyze EEG data for a brain computer interface. Building on his passion for applied biomedical technology, Euan joined LITMUS where he is currently researching magnetic targetting in the context of sonoporation for therapeutic applications.

Theresa Gu, PhD Student

theresa.gu@uwaterloo.ca

Theresa finished her Bachelor of Science at Dalhousie in diagnostic medical ultrasound, becoming a certified sonographer under Sonography Canada. She then pursued a master's degree in biomedical engineering at Dalhousie's uSonic Lab, where she worked on ultrasound transducer design, fabrication and testing. Now at the LITMUS Lab, Theresa is excited to pursue further research in Doppler imaging where she looks to leverage her clinical knowledge to drive engineering development.

Chris Wu, PhD Student

lyuyuan.wu@uwaterloo.ca

Chris complete a Bachelor of Science degree in Material and Nanoscience from the University of Waterloo in 2022, graduating with Dean's Honors. Throughout his undergraduate program, Chris developed enhancements for DNA-based biosensors, gaining insights into drug delivery and cellular models. This experience propelled his research interests towards the realm of ultrasonic systems and LITMUS, where he is currently investigating the impact of drug pathways on cellular models and biological effects.

Liam Cain, MASc Student

liam.cain@uwaterloo.ca

Liam graduated from Conestoga College with a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronic Systems Engineering. For his capstone project, he developed an ultrasonic device aimed at medical applications, sparking a deep interest in biomedical technology. This experience led him to pursue a Master’s degree in the field, under the supervision of Dr. Alfred Yu. Now at LITMUS, Liam is eager to expand his expertise in ultrasonics, with a particular research focus on speed-of-sound and attenuation measurements.

Eric Dong, MASc Student

eric.dong@uwaterloo.ca

Eric obtained his BSc Honours Kinesiology with Dean’s Honours at the University of Waterloo in 2024. During his undergraduate degree, he was involved with various research projects exploring the relationships between blood flow dynamics, exercise, and nutrition. During his last year, he undertook an independent study where he explored changes to blood flow profiles during PEMI. After taking an ultrasound fourth-year course, he became interested in the applications of ultrasound to evaluate blood flow. Eric is excited to apply his experiences in his undergraduate career to explore ultrasound developments.