Biography
Dr. Christopher James Backhouse
Professor and Director of Engineering Physics Program,
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
2-047 Electrical & Computer Engineering Research Facility (ECERF),
University of Alberta, 9107 - 116 St., Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada T6G 2V4
Tel: +1 (780) 492-2920 Fac: +1 (780) 492-1811 Web: wwww.ece.ualberta.ca/~chrisb
Email: 
Abstract
I am a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Alberta with an interest in the life sciences, space, RF, MEMS, microfluidics (otherwise known as "lab on a chip") and miniaturised instrumentation. These interests involve the application of micro/nanotechnologies for uses ranging from nanobiotechnology for medical diagnostics to microfabricated devices for use in space. My past industrial experience has been in the application of quantum devices to medical imaging and of microfabricated devices to the life sciences. I moved from industry to this department in 1999. Much of the research in my lab, the Applied Miniaturisation Laboratory (AML), is directed to making important technologies more accessible through miniaturisation and integration. A dominant theme in this research is that often humanity has the technologies to solve a given problem but cannot afford to apply them. Nowhere is this more important than in applying nanobiotechnologies in "Lab on Chip" systems. In particular, I work closely with academic and industrial collaborators in developing medical diagnostic devices that have the potential to dramatically affect how we deliver healthcare. Please take a look at my website and that of my research group.
Table of Contents
B.Sc. (Physics) at the University of Alberta, 1985
Awarded the Louis B. Crosby Gold Medal.
M.Sc. (Physics & Radio Astronomy) at the University of British Columbia, 1987
Studied the supernova remnant G109 with mapping activities at a wavelength of 6cm using the 300' telescope in Green Bank WV.
Ph.D. (Electrical Engineering) at the University of British Columbia, 1992
In a quest to understand anomalies in my radio astronomy data I was led to study instabilities in III-V transistors, eventually being able to ascribe the anomalies not to alien civilisations but instead to copper contamination in the GaAs transistors used as RF detectors.
Research Scientist at CTF Systems Inc. (Vancouver, B.C.), 1993-1995
At CTF I worked on the development of high-temperature superconducting devices (SQUIDs). These quantum devices form the basis of a powerful method of non-invasive imaging - magnetoencephalography.
Research Associate (Electrical Engineering) at the University of Alberta, 1995-1996
In this work I developed improved methods of physical vaour deposition for building high-aspect ratio structures, using both experiment and the simulation tools developed by Drs. Brett and Dew.
P.Eng. Certification (APEGGA, Engineering Physics) 1996
Scientist (AMC, now Micralyne), Edmonton 1996-1998
Senior Scientist (AMC, now Micralyne), Edmonton 1998-1999
In those years of the Human Genome Project, at Micralyne I worked closely with Applied Biosystems International (ABI) in the development of what was then the world's largest microchip - a microfluidic array that was over 50 cm long. These arrays were designed to perform the sequencing in the ABI 3700 - the workhorse of the human genome project. In related work I led the project to develop Micralyne's Microfluidic Toolkit, a system designed to perform lab on a chip electrophoresis. This toolkit has been sold around the world.
Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, U. of Alberta, 1999-2004
Adjunct Professor, Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, U. of Alberta, 2001-present
Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, U. of Alberta, 2004-present
Director, Engineering Physics Program, Electrical and Computer Engineering, U. of Alberta, 2007-present
The APEGGA Summit Award for Project Achievement in 2008
Research in my lab presently ranges from microphotonics and nanobiotechnology to microelectronics. I have close collaborations with a wide range of researchers in a highly interdisciplinary environment. As a partial list of research themes now underway:
Miniaturised molecular biology & nanobiotechnology and their application to medical diagnostics.
Biomedical instrumentation.
Miniaturised photonics, fluidics, mechanical systems.
RFID and methods of remote sensing.
Various 'germinating' projects (e.g. quantum devices).
The people in my lab gain a solid foundation in engineering while gaining the applications expertise that will be needed to take these technologies forward, whether in industry or academia. In recognition of these exciting developments we recently received the above Summit Award for Project Achievement. My research group's website is here (and my website can be found here).
This page was last revised on June 29, 2008. As is the nature of such things, it will only occasionally be updated - please check up on us in the literature!