Dr. Joel Karp

Biography

Joel Karp is a professor in the Department of Radiology at the University of Pennsylvania with a secondary appointment in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. He received his PhD in nuclear physics from MIT in 1980 and accepted a faculty position at Penn in 1983 after completing post-doctoral training at Stony Brook University, New York. Karp oversees the PET Imaging/Cyclotron Facility in radiology, which supports clinical research studies, and directs operations of the Nuclear Medicine (PET/SPECT/CT) Core Medical School Small Animal Imaging Facility. He serves as the section chief for the physics instrumentation research group in radiology and emphasizes the development of PET instruments and imaging techniques. His research focuses on improving the performance of PET technology, including front-end electronics, detector design, data correction techniques, and 3D image reconstruction algorithms. Karp's team at Penn developed advanced technology in time-of-flight imaging and led the development of the Philips Gemini TF scanner. He has received the Ed Hoffman Memorial Award for outstanding contributions in the field of computers and instrumentation in Nuclear Medicine and is actively involved in various professional organizations such as the IEEE and SNM, serving in several leadership roles. Karp is currently the senior editor of the journal IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science: Nuclear Medical Imaging Sciences and has contributed significantly to developing standards in nuclear medicine.

Research Interests