Prof. Krastena Nikolova, speaker at CONNEXUS 2026

BioTech

Prof. Krastena Nikolova

Full Professor of Biophysics @ Medical University Varna

Talk TopicPortable analytic device - chemical composition in your hands

About the speaker

Professor Krastena Nikolova graduated from the Faculty of Physics at Paisii Hilendarski University of Plovdiv in 2001, and obtained a Master's degree in Applied Mathematics from the same university in 2002.

In 2007, she was awarded a PhD in Physics for her dissertation "Application of Refractometry in the Food Industry", defended at the Central Laboratory of Optical Storage and Processing of Information of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

She served at the University of Food Technologies, Plovdiv, from 2002 to 2011, rising from Assistant to Chief Assistant Professor, and was a visiting lecturer at the Agricultural University of Plovdiv from 2011 to 2014.

In 2016, she was elected Associate Professor of Physics at the Medical University of Varna, promoted to Full Professor in 2018, and obtained a specialty qualification in Biophysics in 2019.

About the talk

Talk DescriptionWe present a compact spectral platform for rapid analysis of microsamples in real-world environments, from liquids to solid and powdered materials. The device combines fluorescence, transmittance and scattering modes to reveal the distinctive optical fingerprint of a sample without relying on large laboratory infrastructure. By integrating miniaturized fiber-optic probes with smartphone-compatible spectrometry, the technology transforms advanced spectroscopy into an accessible tool for field and applied biotechnological studies. It represents a future-oriented analytical concept: fast, mobile and capable of bringing insight directly to the point of sampling.

Prof. Krastena Nikolova