THIBAULT2	Development and optimization of reconstruction software for X-ray ptychography
Type	Theoretical / Experimental
#students	1
Orientation	Why is the scientific problem of interest at all? Ptychography is a lens-less imaging technique that uses coherent light to produce quantitative maps of the transmission function of a sample. Advanced iterative algorithms, which reconstruct images from raw diffraction data, are an integral component of this technique. The code used in our group, soon to be made publicly available, includes state-of-the-art features for many reconstruction purposes.
How	How is the research going to shed light on the given problem? While versatile and flexible, the python code has not been optimised for speed. The ultimate objective is to have real-time image reconstructions for immediate feedback during measurement runs.
What	What is the specific thing that the student will do, and how does it fit inside the overall project? In this project, the student will be given the task of profiling the software and explore various optimisation strategies, including parallelisation and GPU computing. Improvements will be tested during measurement runs at a synchrotron facility.
Special Knowledge	Experience and interest in programming in python and/or C; eventually knowledge of CUDA or openCV; Theoretical understanding of Fourier analysis, diffraction and scattering physics, optics, wave propagation.
Supervisor	Dr Pierre Thibault p.thibault@ucl.ac.uk