̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge - School of Technology

Handheld device could transform heart disease screening

sc604 — Tue, 08 Apr 2025 08:10:47 +0000

̽��ֱ��researchers, from the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge, developed a device that makes it easy for people with or without medical training to record heart sounds accurately. Unlike a stethoscope, the device works well even if it’s not placed precisely on the chest: its larger, flexible sensing area helps capture clearer heart sounds than traditional stethoscopes.

̽��ֱ��device can also be used over clothing, making it more comfortable for patients – especially women – during routine check-ups or community heart health screening programmes.

̽��ֱ��heart sound recordings can be saved on the device, which can then be used to detect signs of heart valve disease. ̽��ֱ��researchers are also developing a machine learning algorithm which can detect signs of valve disease automatically. ̽��ֱ��results are reported in the IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics.

Heart valve disease (valvular heart disease or VHD) has been called the ‘next cardiac epidemic,’ with a prognosis worse than many forms of cancer. Up to 50% of patients with significant VHD remain undiagnosed, and many patients only see their doctor when the disease has advanced and they are experiencing significant complications.

In the UK, the NHS and NICE have identified early detection of heart valve disease as a key goal, both to improve quality of life for patients, and to decrease costs.

An examination with a stethoscope, or auscultation, is the way that most diagnoses of heart valve disease are made. However, just 38% of patients who present to their GP with symptoms of valve disease receive an examination with a stethoscope.

“ ̽��ֱ��symptoms of VHD can be easily confused with certain respiratory conditions, which is why so many patients don’t receive a stethoscope examination,” said Professor Anurag Agarwal from Cambridge’s Department of Engineering, who led the research. “However, the accuracy of stethoscope examination for diagnosing heart valve disease is fairly poor, and it requires a GP to conduct the examination.”

In addition, a stethoscope examination requires patients to partially undress, which is both time consuming in short GP appointments, and can be uncomfortable for patients, particularly for female patients in routine screening programmes.

̽��ֱ��‘gold standard’ for diagnosing heart valve disease is an echocardiogram, but this can only be done in a hospital and NHS waiting lists are extremely long – between six to nine months at many hospitals.

“To help get waiting lists down, and to make sure we’re diagnosing heart valve disease early enough that simple interventions can improve quality of life, we wanted to develop an alternative to a stethoscope that is easy to use as a screening tool,” said Agarwal.

Agarwal and his colleagues have developed a handheld device, about the diameter of a drinks coaster, that could be a solution. Their device can be used by any health professional to accurately record heart sounds, and can be used over clothes.

While a regular or electronic stethoscope has a single sensor, the Cambridge-developed device has six, meaning it is easier for the doctor or nurse – or even someone without any medical training – to get an accurate reading, simply because the surface area is so much bigger.

̽��ֱ��device contains materials that can transmit vibration so that it can be used over clothes, which is particularly important when conducting community screening programmes to protect patient privacy. Between each of the six sensors is a gel that absorbs vibration, so the sensors don’t interfere with each other.

̽��ֱ��researchers tested the device on healthy participants with different body shapes and sizes and recorded their heart sounds. Their next steps will be to test the device in a clinical setting on a variety of patients, against results from an echocardiogram.

In parallel with the development of the device, the researchers have developed a machine learning algorithm that can use the recorded heart sounds to detect signs of valve disease automatically. Early tests of the algorithm suggest that it outperforms GPs in detecting heart valve disease.

“If successful, this device could become an affordable and scalable solution for heart health screening, especially in areas with limited medical resources,” said Agarwal.

̽��ֱ��researchers say that the device could be a useful tool to triage patients who are waiting for an echocardiogram, so that those with signs of valve disease can be seen in a hospital sooner.

A patent has been filed on the device by Cambridge Enterprise, the ̽��ֱ��’s commercialisation arm. Anurag Agarwal is a Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge.

Reference:
Andrew McDonald et al. ‘A flexible multi-sensor device enabling handheld sensing of heart sounds by untrained users.’ IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics (2025). DOI: 10.1109/JBHI.2025.3551882

Researchers have developed a handheld device that could potentially replace stethoscopes as a tool for detecting certain types of heart disease.

This device could become an affordable and scalable solution for heart health screening, especially in areas with limited medical resources

Anurag Agarwal

Acoustics Lab

Person demonstrating use of a handheld device for heart disease screening

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

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Researchers demonstrate the UK’s first long-distance ultra-secure communication over a quantum network

sc604 — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 23:38:58 +0000

̽��ֱ��team, from the Universities of Bristol and Cambridge, created the network, which uses standard fibreoptic infrastructure, but relies on a variety of quantum phenomena to enable ultra-secure data transfer.

̽��ֱ��network uses two types of quantum key distribution (QKD) schemes: ‘unhackable’ encryption keys hidden inside particles of light; and distributed entanglement: a phenomenon that causes quantum particles to be intrinsically linked.

̽��ֱ��researchers demonstrated the capabilities of the network via a live, quantum-secure video conference link, the transfer of encrypted medical data, and secure remote access to a distributed data centre. ̽��ֱ��data was successfully transmitted between Bristol and Cambridge – a fibre distance of over 410 kilometres.

This is the first time that a long-distance network, encompassing different quantum-secure technologies such as entanglement distribution, has been successfully demonstrated. ̽��ֱ��researchers presented their results at the 2025 Optical Fiber Communications Conference (OFC) in San Francisco.

Quantum communications offer unparalleled security advantages compared to classical telecommunications solutions. These technologies are immune against future cyber-attacks, even with quantum computers, which – once fully developed – will have the potential to break through even the strongest cryptographic methods currently in use.

In the past few years, researchers have been working to build and use quantum communication networks. China recently set up a massive network that covers 4,600 kilometres by connecting five cities using both fibreoptics and satellites. In Madrid, researchers created a smaller network with nine connection points that use different types of QKD to securely share information.

In 2019, researchers at Cambridge and Toshiba demonstrated a metro-scale quantum network operating at record key rates of millions of key bits per second. And in 2020, researchers in Bristol built a network that could share entanglement between multiple users. Similar quantum network trials have been demonstrated in Singapore, Italy and the USA.

Despite this progress, no one has built a large, long-distance network that can handle both types of QKD, entanglement distribution, and regular data transmission all at once, until now.

̽��ֱ��experiment demonstrates the potential of quantum networks to accommodate different quantum-secure approaches simultaneously with classical communications infrastructure. It was carried out using the UK’s Quantum Network (UKQN), established over the last decade by the same team, supported by funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and as part of the Quantum Communications Hub project.

“This is a crucial step toward building a quantum-secured future for our communities and society,” said co-author Dr Rui Wang, Lecturer for Future Optical Networks in the Smart Internet Lab's High Performance Network Research Group at the ̽��ֱ�� of Bristol. “More importantly, it lays the foundation for a large-scale quantum internet—connecting quantum nodes and devices through entanglement and teleportation on a global scale.”

“This marks the culmination of more than ten years of work to design and build the UK Quantum Network,” said co-author Adrian Wonfor from Cambridge’s Department of Engineering. “Not only does it demonstrate the use of multiple quantum communications technologies, but also the secure key management systems required to allow seamless end-to-end encryption between us.”

“This is a significant step in delivering quantum security for the communications we all rely upon in our daily lives at a national scale,” said co-author Professor Richard Penty, also from Cambridge and who headed the Quantum Networks work package in the Quantum Communications Hub. “It would not have been possible without the close collaboration of the two teams at Cambridge and Bristol, the support of our industrial partners Toshiba, BT, Adtran and Cisco, and our funders at UKRI.”

“This is an extraordinary achievement which highlights the UK’s world-class strengths in quantum networking technology,” said Gerald Buller, Director of the IQN Hub, based at Heriot-Watt ̽��ֱ��. “This exciting demonstration is precisely the kind of work the Integrated Quantum Networks Hub will support over the coming years, developing the technologies, protocols and standards which will establish a resilient, future-proof, national quantum communications infrastructure.”

̽��ֱ��current UKQN covers two metropolitan quantum networks around Bristol and Cambridge, which are connected via a ‘backbone’ of four long-distance optical fibre links spanning 410 kilometres with three intermediate nodes.

̽��ֱ��network uses single-mode fibre over the EPSRC National Dark Fibre Facility (which provides dedicated fibre for research purposes), and low-loss optical switches allowing network reconfiguration of both classical and quantum signal traffic.

̽��ֱ��team will pursue this work further through a newly funded EPSRC project, the Integrated Quantum Networks Hub, whose vision is to establish quantum networks at all distance scales, from local networking of quantum processors to national-scale entanglement networks for quantum-safe communication, distributed computing and sensing, all the way to intercontinental networking via low-earth orbit satellites.

Reference:
R. Yang et al. ‘A UK Nationwide Heterogeneous Quantum Network.’ Paper presented at the 2025 Optical Fiber Communications Conference and Exhibition (OFC): https://www.ofcconference.org/en-us/home/schedule/

Researchers have successfully demonstrated the UK’s first long-distance ultra-secure transfer of data over a quantum communications network, including the UK’s first long-distance quantum-secured video call.

MR.Cole_Photographer via Getty Images

Abstract background

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Cambridge researchers named 2025 Schmidt Science Fellows

Anonymous — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 11:55:17 +0000

Now in its eighth year, the Fellowship provides financial support for a postdoctoral placement of one to two years at a world-class research institution.

̽��ֱ��funding equips scientists to apply their knowledge to a new field of study with the goal of accelerating discoveries, and to develop their leadership potential.

Dr Poppy Oldroyd, a 2025 Schmidt Science Fellow from the Department of Engineering, plans to pioneer a new frontier in understanding brain communication through optical measurements, ultimately advancing treatments for memory-related diseases.

̽��ֱ��human brain communicates through intricate networks of neurons, crucial for learning and memory. However, how these neural conversations translate into memory formation remains a mystery in neuroscience. Oldroyd’s research aims to use light-based tools, like advanced optogenetics, to explore these pathways in detail. By uncovering how specific brain circuits contribute to learning and memory, this research could revolutionise our understanding of these essential brain functions.

Ultimately, this knowledge may enhance our comprehension of memory-related disorders like Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy.

Dr Matthew McLouglin, a 2025 Schmidt Science Fellow from the Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, plans to develop tools to study how our cells age in real time. This will help us understand why we age and how we might promote healthy aging to improve quality of life in the elderly.

Our DNA is organised into structures called chromosomes. Each chromosome has a protective cap, the ‘telomere’, which is partially lost with each cell division. In old age, cells cannot function properly due to the loss of telomeres, increasing the risk of age-related diseases such as cancer and dementia. McLoughlin will use cutting-edge imaging technology to track the loss of telomeres over time, understanding how telomeres are lost and why this stops cells from functioning.

Oldroyd and McLoughlin join a community of 209 Schmidt Science Fellows from nearly 40 countries who are leaders in interdisciplinary science.

“Philanthropic funding of scientific research, and especially support of early-career researchers, has never been more important,” said Wendy Schmidt, who co-founded Schmidt Science Fellows with her husband, Eric.

“By providing Schmidt Science Fellows with support, community, and freedom to work across disciplines and gain new insights, we hope they’ll tackle some of the world’s most vexing challenges, achieve breakthroughs and help create a healthier, more resilient world for all.”

Established in 2017, Schmidt Science Fellows is a programme of Schmidt Sciences delivered in partnership with the Rhodes Trust.

̽��ֱ��2025 Fellows represent 15 nationalities, including researchers from Jordan and the United Arab Emirates for the first time in the programme’s history.

This year’s cohort will work on a range of problems from cancer treatment to quantum technologies to sustainability.

Alongside their research Placement, Fellows participate in a 12-month interdisciplinary Science Leadership Programme.

Each year, Schmidt Science Fellows works in partnership with more than 100 universities to identify candidates for the Fellowship.

Nominees are selected via an application process that includes an academic review with panels of experts in their original disciplines and final interviews with a multidisciplinary panel of scientists and private sector leaders.

“ ̽��ֱ��Schmidt Science Fellows Program is cultivating a dynamic global community of remarkable scientists and champions of interdisciplinary research,” said Stu Feldman, Chief Scientist at Schmidt Sciences.

“Their work exemplifies Schmidt Sciences’ commitment to support pioneering approaches that will drive the next era of discovery and innovation.”

̽��ֱ��2025 Schmidt Science Fellows represent 27 nominating universities, including, for the first time, McGill ̽��ֱ�� in Canada, RWTH Aachen ̽��ֱ�� in Germany, Tecnológico de Monterrey in Mexico, ̽��ֱ�� of California, Los Angeles in the US, and ̽��ֱ�� of Groningen in the Netherlands.

Two ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge researchers are among the thirty-two early career researchers, tackling issues from improving food security to developing better medical implants, who have been announced as the 2025 Schmidt Science Fellows.

Schmidt Science Fellows

Poppy Oldroyd (left) and Matthew McLoughlin (right)

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Turbocharging the race to protect nature and climate with AI

lw355 — Sun, 06 Apr 2025 17:00:51 +0000

Rebalancing the planet must happen faster. Cambridge researchers are using AI to help.

Opinion: AI can help us heal the planet

lw355 — Fri, 04 Apr 2025 16:23:55 +0000

AI can do in seconds what might take a team of experts a year. This is why we must harness it to reverse the damage we’ve done to the planet. Anil Madhavapeddy explains.

Opinion: Humans should be at the heart of AI

lw355 — Thu, 03 Apr 2025 16:48:27 +0000

With the right development and application, AI could become a transformative force for good. What's missing in current technologies is human insight, says Anna Korhonen.

Connecting AI to public benefit

lw355 — Wed, 26 Mar 2025 15:19:52 +0000

There’s no shortage of buzz around artificial intelligence (AI). From self-driving cars to the promise of revolutionising healthcare, AI is being hailed as the technology that will change the world around us. But what does this really mean for our everyday lives?

̽��ֱ�� spin-out secures funding to improve AI energy efficiency and bandwidth

Anonymous — Mon, 24 Mar 2025 14:24:15 +0000

CamGraPhIC - co-founded Professor Andrea Ferrari, Director of the Cambridge Graphene Centre, and Dr Marco Romagnoli of CNIT in Italy - is developing new types of photonic circuits for energy-efficient, high-bandwidth, optical interconnect technology.

̽��ֱ��investment will support continued innovation in graphene photonics transceivers, a technology that could improve energy efficiency, reduce latency, and increase bandwidth for artificial intelligence (AI) and cellular data transmission.

With the investment, CamGraPhIC will enhance its research and development capabilities and establish a pilot manufacturing line. ̽��ֱ��facility will demonstrate a scalable mass production process compatible with commercial semiconductor and photonics foundries.

̽��ֱ��funding round was co-led by CDP Venture Capital, NATO Innovation Fund, Sony Innovation Fund, and Join Capital, with participation from Bosch Ventures, Frontier IP Group plc, and Indaco Ventures.

CamGraPhIC’s graphene-based transceivers provide a viable, stable, and scalable alternative to current silicon-based photonics. These transceivers deliver higher bandwidth density, and exceptional latency performance, while consuming 80% less energy than traditional pluggable data centre optical transceivers.

̽��ֱ��company say their innovation is particularly effective for transferring large volumes of data between graphic processing units (GPUs) and high bandwidth memory (HBM), which are fundamental to generative AI and high-performance computing.

̽��ֱ��transceivers operate efficiently across a broad temperature range, eliminating the need for complex and costly cooling systems. Thanks to a simplified device architecture enabled by the integration of graphene into the photonic structure, these transceivers are also more cost-effective to manufacture.

Thanks to this funding, CamGraPhIC will expand to applications in avionics, automotive advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), and space, where rugged, high-performance transceivers offer significant technical and commercial advantages over existing technologies.

“We are thrilled for this new phase in the journey towards commercialisation of CamGraPhIC groundbreaking and energy efficient devices, to speed up development of AI hardware, without impacting global emissions,” said Ferrari. “Having Sony, Bosch and NATO as shareholders and board members will help focus the work towards the most relevant applications, including defence and security.”

“With the backing of renowned investors, we are excited to propel towards commercialisation the Graphene Photonics technology to overcome the interconnection bottleneck of regenerative AI processing systems and driving the next leap in scaling bandwidth and reducing energy consumption for the future of optical data communications, ” said Romagnoli, former Head of Research Sector - Advanced Technologies for Photonic Integration of the Pisa National Inter- ̽��ֱ�� Consortium for Telecommunications (CNIT), and now Chief Scientific Officer of CamGraPhIC.

A ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge spin-out company working to improve AI efficiency and bandwidth has raised €25 million in new funding.

CamGraPhIC

Marco Romagnoli (L) and Andrea Ferrari (R)

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