Elena Zannoni

For More Information

• Radiation and Detection Imaging Group

Education

• Ph.D., Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (USA), 2021
• M.S., Biomedical Engineering, University of Pisa (Italy), 2015
• B.S., Biomedical Engineering, University of Pisa (Italy), 2013

Biography

Dr. Elena Maria Zannoni is a research scientist in the Radiation and Detection Imaging (RDI) Laboratory in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Dr.Zannoni received with honors a B.Sc. degree (2013) and a M.S. degree (2015) in Biomedical Engineering from University of Pisa, Italy. She earned a Ph.D. in Bioengineering at UIUC in 2021. Her research focuses on the development of advanced nuclear medicine imaging systems based on state-of-art semiconductor detectors and collimator designs for which she holds a patent. For her Ph.D. she designed, developed, and characterized a preclinical SPECT system, in collaboration with University of Chicago and Northwestern University. Currently, she is involved in the development of two clinical nuclear medicine imaging systems: the Dynamic Extremity SPECT system for imaging peripheral vascular disease in lower extremities, in collaboration with University of Pennsylvania and Yale University, and the AlphaSPECT system, a full-body SPECT system for targeted alpha therapy applications, in collaboration with Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Zannoni has presented her research in many national and international conferences, authoring and co-authoring 40+ presentations and workshops. She received several grants from the IEEE Women in Engineering Society and the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society, including twice the Valentin T. Jordanov Radiation Instrumentation Award. Dr. Zannoni won the first place in the IEEE Student Paper Award competition during the 2017 IEEE Medical Imaging Conference in Atlanta (USA), the third place in the same competition the following year in Sydney (AUS), the first place in the Physics, Instrumentation and Data Sciences Council Young Investigation Award at the 2021 SNMMI Annual Meeting, and the second place in the Physics, Instrumentation and Data Sciences Council Poster Competition at the 2023 SNMMI Annual Meeting. In 2022, she was awarded the IEEE NPSS Edward J. Hoffman Early Career Development Grant, intended to support the career development of outstanding early-career researchers who have the potential to transform the field of medical imaging, and she was named a 2022 EECS Rising Star at University of Texas Austin. In 2023 she was accepted and successfully completed the SNMMI Future Leaders Academy. She has been elected and currently serving as a member of the Board of Directors of the SNMMI Physics, Instrumentation and Data Sciences Council in 2023-2025.

Academic Positions

• Research Scientist, Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2022 - Present
• Postdoctoral Research Associate, Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering Department, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (USA), 2021 – 2022

Research Interests

• Statistical Techniques for the Design and Optimization of Medical Imaging Systems
• Advanced High-Performance Gamma and X-ray Imaging Solid-State Detectors
• Hyperspectral Ionizing Molecular Imaging techniques and instrumentation (SPECT, PET, XFCT) for clinical and preclinical applications

Selected Articles in Journals

• C. Yang, E. M. Zannoni, and L.-J. Meng. (2023) Joint estimation of interaction position and energy deposition in semiconductor SPECT imaging sensors using fully connected neural network, Physics in Medicine & Biology.
• E. M. Zannoni, C. Yang and L. -J. Meng. (2021) Design Study of an Ultrahigh Resolution Brain SPECT System Using a Synthetic Compound-Eye Camera Design with Micro-Slit and Micro-Ring Apertures, in IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging,
• X. Lai, L. Cai, J. -W. Tan, E. M. Zannoni, B. Odintsov and L. -J. Meng. (2021). Design, Performance Evaluation, and Modeling of an Ultra-High Resolution Detector Dedicated for Simultaneous SPECT/MRI, in IEEE Transactions on Radiation and Plasma Medical Sciences.
• E.M. Zannoni, M.D. Wilson, K. Bolz, M. Goede, F. Lauba, D. Schöne, J. Zhang, M. Verhoeven & L.-J. Meng. (2020). Development of a multi-detector readout circuitry for ultrahigh energy resolution single-photon imaging applications. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, vol. 981, p. 164531, 2020/11/21/ 2020,
• X. Lai, E.M. Zannoni, J. George, & L.-J. Meng (2020). System modeling and evaluation of a prototype inverted-compound eye gamma camera for the second-generation MR compatible SPECT. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment. vol. 954, p. 162046, 2020

Patents

• L.-J. Meng, X. Lai, E.M. Zannoni (2022). Gamma camera for SPECT imaging and associated methods. U.S. Patent No. 11,269,084. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Professional Societies

• Senior Member, IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS)
• Senior Member, IEEE Women in Engineering (WIE)
• Associate Member, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI)
• Member, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society

Honors

• 2022 EECS Rising Star, University of Texas at Austin (2022)
• IEEE NPSS Edward J. Hoffman Early Career Development Grant (2022)
• First Place in the Physics, Instrumentation and Data Sciences Council Young Investigator Award, 2021 SNMMI Annual Meeting (2021)
• Distinguished Active Member Award, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, Illinois Alpha Chapter (2019)
• Third Place at 2018 IEEE NPSS Christopher J Thompson Student Award ,2018 IEEE NSS/MIC/RTSD Conference, Sydney (AUS) (2018)
• Outstanding Initiate Award, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, Illinois Alpha Chapter (2018)
• First Place at 2017 IEEE Medical Imaging Conference Best Student Paper Award ,2017 IEEE NSS/MIC/RTSD Conference, Atlanta (USA) (2017 )