Dr Hongfu Sun

Overview

Dr Hongfu Sun completed his PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Alberta in 2015, followed by postdoctoral training in Calgary until 2018. He joined the Imaging, Sensing and Biomedical Engineering team in the School of ITEE at UQ in 2019 and was awarded the ARC DECRA fellowship in 2021. His research interests include developing novel magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast mechanisms, e.g. Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM), fast and multi-parametric MRI acquisitions, and advanced image reconstruction techniques, including deep learning and artificial intelligence, to advance medical imaging techniques for clinical applications.

Dr Sun is currently recruiting graduate students. Check out Available Projects for details. Open to both Domestic and International students.

Research Interests

  • Fast, multi-parametric, and quantitative MRI acquisition methods at ultra-high field
    A single MRI acquisition usually takes 3-5 minutes, and a standard clinical protocol may require a couple of them for complementary contrasts. My research interest is to significantly reduce the total scan time for each patient while maintaining the same amount of information for diagnosis, by (1) accelerating individual scans with parallel imaging techniques at ultra-high field, and (2) designing novel MRI sequences that can produce multi-contrast weighted images and multi-parametric quantitative maps from a single MR acquisition.
  • MR image processing through advanced optimization techniques and deep learning
    My research interest is to develop advanced image reconstruction and processing methods to solve some of the mathematical challenges in MRI research, such as the ill-posed inverse problem in Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM). Some of the approaches I am particularly interested in are (1) image optimization techniques such as image regularization and compressed sensing, and (2) machine learning and especially deep learning through the convolutional neural network (CNN) and transformers in vision.
  • Brain imaging applications in neuroscience and neurological diseases
    MRI is one of the best tools to study the brain in vivo, thanks to its excellent soft tissue contrast and its versatile contrast mechanisms. I am interested in applying advanced and comprehensive image analysis on different MRI methods to better understand neuroscience, such as brain development in children and structural and functional connectivity of the brain, as well as some of the neurological diseases such as Alzheimer/Dementia, Multiple Sclerosis, Schizophrenia, and Stroke.

Research Impacts

Dr Hongfu Sun is one of the early pioneers in developing a novel MRI technique - Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM), which is one of the most significant MRI contrast breakthroughs in recent years, that has demonstrated wide clinical applications in healthy, aging and diseased human brains, such as dementia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia, stroke, etc. Since commencing at UQ, Dr Sun has extended his research topics to exploiting novel reconstruction algorithms using state-of-the-art deep learning-based artificial intelligence techniques.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, University of Alberta

Publications

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Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

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Available Projects

  • I am currently recruiting Master and PhD students to innovate on novel MRI methods and deep learning image reconstruction techniques that can be eventually applied to neuroscience and neurological diseases. We have an excellent and accessible MRI facility here at UQ, e.g. a state-of-the-art 3T Prisma and a prestigious 7T whole-body system (only two in Australia, the other one in UniMelb). The research projects will involve MRI physics, pulse sequence programming, image processing (e.g. deep learning), and image analysis. By the end of your graduate study, you will be an expert in MRI with comprehensive skills in maths, physics, computer programming, and artificial intelligence.

    https://graduate-school.uq.edu.au/project/developing-ai-based-mri-methods-microscopic-imaging

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Publications

Featured Publications

Journal Article

Conference Publication

PhD and MPhil Supervision

Current Supervision

Possible Research Projects

Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.

  • I am currently recruiting Master and PhD students to innovate on novel MRI methods and deep learning image reconstruction techniques that can be eventually applied to neuroscience and neurological diseases. We have an excellent and accessible MRI facility here at UQ, e.g. a state-of-the-art 3T Prisma and a prestigious 7T whole-body system (only two in Australia, the other one in UniMelb). The research projects will involve MRI physics, pulse sequence programming, image processing (e.g. deep learning), and image analysis. By the end of your graduate study, you will be an expert in MRI with comprehensive skills in maths, physics, computer programming, and artificial intelligence.

    https://graduate-school.uq.edu.au/project/developing-ai-based-mri-methods-microscopic-imaging