Tornari Vivi

Dr. Vivi Tornari is a Research Fellow and head of the Holography laboratory at IESL/FORTH, specializing in optical metrology and cultural heritage preservation. She has held this position since 1996 and has coordinated major EU projects such as E-RIHS and CHARISMA. Her work focuses on developing holographic interferometry techniques for structural diagnosis of artworks, fraud detection, and environmental impact assessment. She holds a PhD in Applied Science from the University of Sunderland and has authored over 70 scientific publications.

Education:

• Postdoctoral Fellow in Optical Holography, Royal College of Art (RCA), London (1990)
• PhD in Applied Science, University of Sunderland, UK (2009)
• MSc in Chemical Engineering/Material Science, National Technical University of Athens (1996)

Research interests include laser-based structural analysis, speckle interferometry, and the integration of optical methods for heritage preservation. She has pioneered non-invasive diagnostic tools such as the Applied Holography Metrology Laboratory and has advised on EC projects as an evaluator.

Funding highlights include:

• Leadership in EU projects totaling over €20M
• Coordinator of SYDDARTA (FP7) and CLIMATE FOR CULTURE (FP7)
• PI for HOLOAUTHENTIC (FP5) and LASERACT (FP6)

Her publications emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration, combining optical engineering with conservation science. Key innovations include:

• Development of DHSPI (Digital Holographic Speckle Pattern Interferometry)
• Integration of thermography with interferometry for defect analysis
• Laser ablation studies on polymer substrates

Labs/Teams: Lead the Holography Lab at IESL, collaborating with international institutions like the V&A Museum and Imperial College London. Current projects focus on European research infrastructures (E-RIHS) and climate change impacts on heritage materials.