Medical Physics


 
History

Medical physics is the application concepts, theories and methods of physics to medicine or healthcare. Medical physics is, in practice, an applied branch of physics that is associated with the application of physical methods and concepts in the diagnosis and treatment of human diseases.
Tarbiat Modares University is the first university in the country to offer masters and doctoral programs in medical physics. A masters program in medical physics began in October 1983 with the admissions of six students at Tarbiat Modares University of Medical Sciences. PhD Program in this field began in 1989 with the admissions of two students.

The Mission of the Department

The mission of Medical Physics education program is to educate committed and expert graduates who can be effective in promoting the development of medical physics through education and research. Graduates should be able to control and guarantee the quality of equipment and services, management and planning, and scientific and practical supervision.

Research Areas of the Department

The most important research areas in the Department of Medical Physics are as follows:

This Department is active in two areas of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation. In the field of non-ionizing radiation, the Departments research is divided into three branches of electromagnetism, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging. In the electromagnetic field, the effect and application of electromagnetic waves and electrical and magnetic fields at cellular, animal and human levels are experimentally and mathematically studied.
In the ultrasound field, the effects and applications of diagnostic (imaging) and the therapeutic effects of ultrasound, ranging from a single cell to human beings, are studied. The focal point of research in magnetic resonance imaging is the improvement of imaging techniques and quality. Moreover, studies on the laser and its application are also investigated in this area. The ionizing radiation domain is divided into two broad categories of radiotherapy and nuclear medicine. In the field of radiotherapy, main focus of research is rested upon the correction of radiation therapy in order to improve the therapeutic outcome.
In this research, computer and simulation techniques, cellular studies and imaging are used. In the nuclear medicine branch, the focus is on improving the internal dosimeter and the various biological effects of radiation originated in the tissue and outside the tissue. The applied techniques are mainly simulations of Monte Carlo and cellular experiments.