Dominik John

Research

Cover article

Quantitative Stain Mapping in X‑Ray Virtual Histology

D. John, D. M. Paganin, M.-C. Zdora, L. M. Petzold, P. Ilg, J. Chen, S. Baggio, J. B. Thalhammer, S. Wirtensohn, J. Moosmann, J. U. Hammel, F. Beckmann, S. J. Alloo, J. N. Ahlers, M. Busse, J. Herzen, K. S. Morgan.

Advanced Science 13, 21 (2026) · Article e74957

A method that generates microscopy-style histological images directly from 3D X-ray scans of excised tissue — letting researchers navigate a specimen’s full 3D volume in a familiar histological format, without destroying it in the process.

Research article (DOI)

Phase-contrast & dark-field imaging

Exploiting the refractive index and small-angle scattering of X-rays for contrast channels beyond conventional attenuation, both at grating-based lab setups and at synchrotrons.

Fig. from IEEE TIP 2026 · CC-BY

X-ray virtual histology

Getting anatomical and tissue-level information out of 3D X-ray scans to aid biomedical research and diagnosis, without physically cutting the sample the way conventional histology requires.

Dynamic & functional tomography

Multimodal monitoring of dynamic processes, by adding phase-contrast and dark-field channels to conventional CT for enhanced contrast and quantitative information. One example: tracking tissue cryoablation as it happens.

Fig. from Sci. Rep. 14, 5599 (2024) · CC-BY

Media & Press

• 

  P.M. magazine · Jul 2026

  Cancer diagnostics in 3D (German)

  Interview about my virtual histology research in Germany’s second-largest popular-science magazine. We discuss how 3D X-ray imaging of excised tissue could improve cancer diagnostics, letting doctors examine tumors without slicing them into thin sections.

• 

  TUM press release · Mar 2026

  Seeing more with less

  TUM feature on an advanced X-ray imaging technique that extracts more information from biological specimens while lowering radiation dose.

• 

  Hereon press release · Jan 2026

  From Tissue Section to 3D Image

  Press release on a 3D X-ray method that brings standard histology staining together with whole-specimen imaging, so researchers can see tissue structure in 3D rather than only in thin 2D sections.

• 

  FastForwardScience · 2025

  Why are X-ray images still black and white? (German)

  Award-winning short explainer video on why medical X-rays have been monochrome for over a century and how spectral X-ray imaging is finally adding color. The technique distinguishes materials by their energy-dependent attenuation, with the goal of catching disease earlier and more reliably.

  Young Scientist Award — Long Best Debut Video · FastForwardScience 2025

  Photo: Simon Esser / Wissenschaft im Dialog

Publications

Peer-reviewed. Full, up-to-date list on ORCID and Google Scholar.

First Author

• 

  Advanced Science · 2026 · Cover article

  Quantitative Stain Mapping in X‑Ray Virtual Histology

  D. John, D. M. Paganin, M.-C. Zdora, L. M. Petzold, P. Ilg, J. Chen, S. Baggio, J. B. Thalhammer, S. Wirtensohn, J. Moosmann, J. U. Hammel, F. Beckmann, S. J. Alloo, J. Ahlers, M. Busse, J. Herzen, K. S. Morgan

  First method to generate stain-specific 3D maps directly from X-ray scans of excised tissue, letting researchers explore a full specimen in the familiar language of histology — without physically sectioning it.

  DOI · Hereon press

• 

  Optica · 2026

  Near-perfect efficiency in X-ray phase microtomography

  D. John, G. Breitenhuber, S. Wirtensohn, F. Hinterdobler, L. Gaetani, S. Savatović, J. Lucht, M. Osterhoff, M. Eckermann, T. Salditt, J. Herzen

  Extracts three simultaneous contrast channels — attenuation, phase, and dark-field — while keeping radiation dose as low as physically possible, maximizing information per absorbed dose. Particularly relevant for imaging sensitive biological tissue at synchrotron sources.

  DOI · TUM press

• 

  IEEE Transactions on Image Processing · 2026

  Extending the Field of View in Modulation-Based X‑Ray Phase Microtomography

  D. John^*, J. Chen^*, C. Gaßner, S. Savatović, L. M. Petzold, S. Wirtensohn, M. Riedel, J. U. Hammel, J. Moosmann, F. Beckmann, M. Wieczorek, J. Herzen *shared first authorship

  Stitches overlapping modulator scans to image specimens significantly larger than the detector field of view, making phase and dark-field tomography practical for samples that would otherwise not fit.

  DOI

• 

  Scientific Reports · 2024

  X-ray dark-field computed tomography for monitoring of tissue freezing

  D. John, W. Gottwald, D. Berthe, S. Wirtensohn, J. Hickler, L. Heck, J. Herzen

  Demonstrates real-time dark-field CT tracking of the ice front during tissue cryoablation, a minimally invasive cancer treatment, providing multimodal feedback that enables better control of the treatment procedure.

  DOI