Dr Sarah Bugby

Dr Bugby completed her PhD in 2015 at the Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Leicester. Her thesis focussed on the development of a portable gamma camera for medical imaging, a technology that was subsequently licensed for commercial manufacture and is now in clinical trials.

In September 2019, Sarah joined Loughborough University as a Lecturer in Physics. Her research focus is radiation imaging including areas such as novel materials, Monte Carlo modelling, detector characterisation, image analysis, and imaging system design and testing.

She is committed to moving her research beyond the lab, so that it can make a difference to society. She has a strong track record in translation and innovation, collaborating closely with industrial and clinical partners in interdisciplinary areas. Applications of her work include cancer diagnosis and treatment, and nuclear decommissioning. Find out more. She welcomes collaborations with other academics, organisations and industries. 

• Intraoperative imaging and radioguidance
• Nuclear medicine
• X-ray and gamma detectors
• Scintillator and compound semiconductor detector performance
• Environmental and asset monitoring

Publications can be found on ORCID, with all recent publications publicly available here.

Research Group

Dr Bugby leads the Applied Radiation and Medical Physics (ARAMP) research group.

External roles

• Scientific Advisor - Serac Imaging Systems Ltd. (2023 - present)
• Institute of Physics Medical Physics Group Committee (2018 – present)
• Midlands Medical Imaging Network Committee (2019 – present)
• External examiner for Medical Physics MSc, University of Surrey (2023 – present)
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2021 – present)
• Impact lead – STFC Cancer Diagnosis Network+ (2019 – 2024)
• STFC Public Engagement Early-Career (PEER) Forum (2019-2023)
• Active reviewer for funding bodies, journals, and conferences.

Outreach and public engagement

Dr Bugby is involved with the Loughborough University outreach project "Life Through A Lens", developing fun hands-on activities inspired by the physics of imaging to encourage young people to explore scientific phenomena and support them to gain a deeper understanding of where these subjects might take them. Activities are supported by the Institute of Physics and can be adapted for age five and upwards for use at national science festivals, school visits and community groups. More information can be found on the Life Through A Lens website. 

She is happy to be contacted about public engagement activities including local events, traditional media, podcasts, public lectures, and school talks.

• PHB903 - Physics Laboratory II: Design and analysis for science and industry (Module Leader)
• PHC801 - Medical Physics (Module Leader)
• PHC902 - Group Project (External Partner Coordinator)
• Final year project supervision for BSc, MPhys and MSc students

As the Placements and Employability Coordinator within the department, Dr. Bugby plays a vital role in connecting businesses with talented, industry-ready physics graduates. If you are interested in hiring highly skilled graduates, please don't hesitate to get in touch to discuss ways to connect your business with our students.