Dr. Philipp Köhler

Dr. Philipp Köhler started his career by completing a Bachelor and Master in Physics at the Technical University of Munich, while also taking courses in Biomedical Physics. He then received the Cavendish Laboratories departmental scholarship at the University of Cambridge, where he obtained a second Master in Nanotechnology and finished his PhD in Physics with a focus on spectroscopy and optics. In parallel he gained experience by working at the Cancer Research UK on the Addenbrooke’s hospital site using fluorescence from DNA origami structures as markers in multispectral optoacoustic tomography (MSOT). To expand his knowledge transfer skills to bring novel research to the market he attended courses at the Cambridge Judge Business School and worked for the London based startup Cortirio, which builds devices to detect traumatic brain injuries through functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Fascinated by MSOTs imaging capabilities he joined Helmholtz Munich in late 2019 focusing his energies on advancing optoacoustic sensing by acquiring funding, developing prototypes, organizing clinical investigations and performing market studies. He became the group leader of Medical Sensors in September, 2021.

Originating from optoacoustic imaging, Dr. Köhler and his team are developing novel optoacoustic sensors that bring the advantages of imaging modalities to a much greater patient cohort by enabling low-cost measurements in a much smaller and portable form-factor. Existing imaging methods are mostly universal tools that solely create an image, but rely on expert medical knowledge for an accurate interpretation of the results. This group’s sensors are specifically designed for each medical indication and use advanced data analysis methods such as Machine Learning and AI for an accurate and objective classification of diseases and their progression without the need for imaging. Relevant applications include diabetes and its complications, cardiovascular disease or dermatology, where an early and objective detection enables a more targeted and effective treatment.

Medical SensorsOpticsData AnalysisPrototypingKnowledge TransferMarket Research and Commercialization