Rate My Professor Frédérique Vanholsbeeck

Frédérique Vanholsbeeck is Professor of Physics at the University of Auckland, Department of Physics, and Director of Te Whai Ao—the Dodd-Walls Centre for Photonic and Quantum Technologies hosted by the University of Otago. She joined the Dodd-Walls Centre in 2015 and took on the directorship role, leading a national initiative in photonics and quantum technologies. Vanholsbeeck obtained her PhD in Physics from the Université Libre de Bruxelles in 2003, with a thesis on nonlinear optical phenomena in fibers for wavelength-division-multiplexing applications. She previously earned her MSc in Physics from the same university in 2001. Appointed as Lecturer in the Department of Physics at the University of Auckland in 2005, she advanced to Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor, and full Professor. As head of the biophotonics group, she has built a research program bridging physics and biomedical sciences.

Her primary research interests lie in biophotonics, including optical coherence tomography, fluorescence spectroscopy, and nonlinear imaging for real-time quantitative biomedical analysis. Key publications include “Absolute bacterial cell enumeration using flow cytometry” (Ou, McGoverin, Swift, Vanholsbeeck; Journal of Applied Microbiology, 2017), “Rapid and cost-effective evaluation of bacterial viability using flow cytometry with fluorescent redox dyes” (Ou, McGoverin, Swift, Vanholsbeeck; Analyst, 2019), and “Optical coherence tomography complements confocal microscopy for improved histological assessment of microscopic tumor margins” (Hari, McGoverin, Swift, Vanholsbeeck; Scientific Reports, 2019). These contributions have advanced bacterial viability assessment and tissue imaging techniques. Vanholsbeeck has received the 2020 Hill Tinsley Medal from the New Zealand Association of Scientists, Fellow status with SPIE, Senior Membership in Optica and SPIE, and multiple Marsden Fund grants, including Fast-Start and standard rounds in 2021 and 2022. Elected Mema o Te Apārangi by Royal Society Te Apārangi, her leadership influences photonic innovations across health and quantum fields in New Zealand.