Stephen McLaughlin

Professor Stephen McLaughlin is Deputy Principal for Research and Impact at Heriot-Watt University and formerly Head of the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences (2011-2020). He holds fellowships in multiple prestigious societies including the Royal Society of Edinburgh and Royal Academy of Engineering.

Research focuses on signal processing and computational imaging for 35+ years, specializing in Bayesian methods for signal-to-noise enhancement, detection algorithms, parameter estimation, and classification systems. Current work explores quantum-inspired imaging and single-photon lidar technologies.

Publications demonstrate strong focus on Bayesian methods for photon-efficient imaging, with recent advancements in video super-resolution, neuromorphic processing, and real-time 3D reconstruction. Work consistently integrates statistical methods with novel hardware implementations.

• Fellow of the European Signal Processing Association (2020)
• Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (2009)
• Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (2004)
• Fellow of the IEEE (2011)

Leads research in computational imaging and contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals through sensor technology advancements.