Ghost imaging first emerged in the domain of visible-light optics. The term arose from Einstein’s description of quantum entanglement as “spooky action at a distance,” since initial realisations of the method utilized pairs of entangled photons; however, classical implementations of GI have since been developed.

 

A truly remarkable feature of GI is that images are formed based on photons that have never interacted with the sample. The quest for imaging protocols with ever-reduced dose is thus one of the most powerful motivators driving the currently exploding field of ghost imaging: GI decouples the properties of the final image from the X-ray dose (and detector) in a manner that is still not fully understood.

 

Three dimensional ghost imaging was performed for the first time in 2018, by scientists at ANU and international collaborators at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility. The student will work with these scientists to understand this bleeding-edge imaging method, and further advance the state of the art.

• Mathematics (Fourier transforms, Multivariable calculus, Linear algebra, Statistics)
• Physics (Optics)
• Some experience in programming, preferably python.