Bioengineering and biophysics
Ever since Luigi Galvani electrocuted a dead frog and observed its muscles moving, the principles of physics have been used to probe aspects of the biological systems of living organisms. Initially starting with this rudimentary experiment…
…biophysics has moved on to probe deeper into molecular and cellular biology, using mathematical and computational analysis to explore the conformation and dynamics of specific molecules to predict their interactions all the while using the lens of physics and chemistry to make sense of these systems.
For those that looked at the electrical stimulation of the frog’s muscles and saw the potential to create new applications and technologies, instead of investigating basic biology, bioengineering may prove more fruitful. Here, engineering principles are used to solve problems and create medical devices. This can take researchers from the generation of new imaging technologies and less invasive medical devices to the manipulation of cells tissues and organs to complete a specific function.
You can catch more information and research papers about the techniques involved in biophysics and bioengineering here.