Courses 2025-26

Undergraduate research with a written report at the end of each term; supervised by a Caltech faculty member, or co-advised by a Caltech faculty member and an external researcher. Graded pass/fail.

All PhD degree candidates in Medical Engineering are required to attend all MedE seminars. If there is no MedE seminar during a week, then the students should go to any other graduate-level seminar that week. Students should broaden their knowledge of the engineering principles and sciences of medical engineering. Students are expected to learn the forefronts of the research and development of medical materials, technologies, devices and systems from the seminars. Graded pass/fail.

This course explores the functions of the human body, focusing on normal physiological processes and selected diseases. Organized by major organ systems-Muscle, nervous, cardiovascular, renal, respiratory, gastrointestinal, and endocrine-the course examines their functions and interactions in maintaining homeostasis. Students will develop a foundational understanding of physiological functions from the subcellular to whole-body level, analyze feedback control mechanisms, and apply their knowledge to assess health and disease. This course prepares students for advanced studies in medical and health-related fields.

The goal of this course is to introduce engineering scientists to medical physiological systems: with a special emphasis on the clinical relevance. The design of the course is to present two related lectures each week: An overview of the physiology of a system followed by examples of current clinical medical challenges and research highlighting diagnostic and therapeutic modalities. The final three weeks of the course will be a mini workshop where the class explores challenging problems in medical physiology. The course ultimately seeks to promote a bridge between relevant clinical problems and engineering scientists who desire to solve them. Graded pass/fail.

The goal of the course is to teach students technical creativity (ideas that solve problems) and how to use artificial intelligence tools developed in the course to enhance their creativity further. Because technical creativity needs a specific context, we selected the context of microfluidic technologies and global health challenges. This course combines three parts. First, students will dive deeply into human and AI augmented technical creativity. Second, students will dive into the physics, kinetics, and transport fundamentals that underpin microfluidic technologies and explore examples of translation of technologies into practice. Finally, students will collaborate in teams to apply their creativity to global health challenges. AI tools will be introduced to aid students in generating and evaluating ideas. Students will be encouraged and helped, but not required, to develop their inventions further by working with OTTCP and entrepreneurial resources on campus. The course benefits from the enrollment of students with diverse backgrounds and interests. Students are encouraged to contact the instructor to discuss enrollment.

Introduction to the mechanical behavior of solids, emphasizing the relationships between microstructure, architecture, defects, and mechanical properties. Elastic, inelastic, and plastic properties of crystalline and amorphous materials. Relations between stress and strains for different types of materials. Introduction to dislocation theory, motion and forces on dislocations, strengthening mechanisms in crystalline solids. Nanomaterials: properties, fabrication, and mechanics. Architected solids: fabrication, deformation, failure, and energy absorption. Biomaterials: mechanical properties of composites, multi-scale microstructure, biological vs. synthetic, shear lag model. Fracture in brittle solids and linear elastic fracture mechanics.

Introduction to selected topics in mixed-signal circuits and systems in highly scaled CMOS technologies. Design challenges and limitations in current and future technologies will be discussed through topics such as clocking (PLLs and DLLs), clock distribution networks, sampling circuits, high-speed transceivers, timing recovery techniques, equalization, monitor circuits, power delivery, and converters (A/D and D/A). A design project is an integral part of the course.

Part a covers the principles of optical photon transport in biological tissue. Topics include a brief introduction to biomedical optics, single-scatterer theories, Monte Carlo modeling of photon transport, convolution for broad-beam responses, radiative transfer equation and diffusion theory, hybrid Monte Carlo method and diffusion theory, and sensing of optical properties and spectroscopy, (absorption, elastic scattering, Raman scattering, and fluorescence). Part b covers established optical imaging technologies. Topics include ballistic imaging (confocal microscopy, two-photon microscopy, super-resolution microscopy, etc.), optical coherence tomography, Mueller optical coherence tomography, and diffuse optical tomography. Part c covers emerging optical imaging technologies. Topics include photoacoustic tomography, ultrasound-modulated optical tomography, optical time reversal (wavefront shaping/engineering), and ultrafast imaging. MedE/EE/BE 168b offered 2025-26.

MEMS/NEMS technologies are useful to make advanced devices for such as electronics, optics, sensors, actuators and medicine. This course will emphasize the sciences and fundamentals of selected MEMS/NEMS technologies which enable micro 3D biomedical devices. For example, covered technologies include 3D wet isotropic/anisotropic chemical etching, bulk and surface micromachining (e.g., EDP, KOH and DRIE etching), wafer bonding, micro/nano molding and other advanced packaging techniques. This course covers many MEMS/NEMS devices but will emphasize their biomedical applications such as pressure sensors, microfluidics, accelerometers/gyros, lab-on-chips, micro total-analysis system, neuromodulation devices, biomedical implants, etc.

This course will cover the basic principles of biological and medical imaging technologies including magnetic resonance, ultrasound, nuclear imaging, fluorescence, bioluminescence and photoacoustics, and the design of chemical and biological probes to obtain molecular information about living systems using these modalities. Topics will include nuclear spin behavior, sound wave propagation, radioactive decay, photon absorption and scattering, spatial encoding, image reconstruction, statistical analysis, and molecular contrast mechanisms. The design of molecular imaging agents for biomarker detection, cell tracking, and dynamic imaging of cellular signals will be analyzed in terms of detection limits, kinetics, and biological effects. Participants in the course will develop proposals for new molecular imaging agents for applications such as functional brain imaging, cancer diagnosis, and cell therapy.

Students will learn to use an Arduino microcontroller to interface sensing and actuation hardware with the computer. Students will learn and practice engineering design principles through a set of projects where they design and implement biosensing systems. Examples include a pulse monitor, a pulse oximeter, and a real-time polymerase-chain-reaction incubator. Enrollment is limited based on laboratory capacity.

Subject matter will change from term to term depending upon staff and student interest, but will generally center on the understanding and applying engineering for medical problems.

This course provides a broad coverage on the frontiers of medical diagnostic and therapeutic technologies and devices based on multidisciplinary engineering principles. Topics include FDA regulations, in vitro diagnostics, biosensors, electrograms, medical imaging technologies, medical implants, nanomedicine, cardiovascular engineering & technology, medical electronics, wireless communications through the skin and tissue, and medical robotics. Overall, the course will cover the scientific fundamentals of biology, chemistry, engineering, physics, and materials specific to medical applications. However, both the lectures and assignments will also emphasize the design aspects of the topics as well as up-to-date literature study.

Sensors play a very important role in all aspect of modern life. This course is an essential introduction to a variety of physical, chemical and biological sensors that are used in medicine and healthcare. The fundamental recognition mechanisms, transduction principles and materials considerations for designing powerful sensing and biosensing devices will be covered. We will also discuss the development of emerging electronic-skin, wearable and soft electronics toward personalized health monitoring. Participants in the course will develop proposals for novel sensing technologies to address the current medical needs.

This is a course for senior undergraduates and graduate students. This course provides a review for advanced medical neuromodulation devices based on multidisciplinary engineering principles. Emphasis will be on implantable neuromodulation devices for both neural recording and stimulation such as EKG, EEG, EMG, pacemakers, DBS, etc. Sub-topics include biomaterials, biocompatibility, medical electronics, and FDA regulation on medical devices. The course will focus on engineering fundamentals specific for neural applications. Lectures and assignments will emphasize the design aspects of various devices as well as up-to-date literature study.

Qualified graduate students are advised in medical engineering research, with the arrangement of MedE staff. Graded pass/fail.