Celebrating the life of Department of Physics Chair and Professor Jahan Tavakkoli
Professor Jahan Tavakkoli with his research group, the Advanced Biomedical Ultrasound Imaging and Therapy (ABUITL) lab, at iBEST in St. Michael’s Hospital’s Keenan Research Center.
On December 6th, 2024, Toronto Metropolitan University’s (TMU) Faculty of Science lost one of its leaders. Professor Jahangir (Jahan) Tavakkoli touched many lives during his time in the Department of Physics and also through his work as a leading biomedical ultrasound researcher. He joined TMU in 2007, shortly after the creation of the Department of Physics in 2005. Tavakkoli received tenure in 2013 and, over the years, served the department as Assistant Chair and Undergraduate Program Director in Medical Physics. He was appointed Chair of the department in July 2023.
As a researcher, Tavakkoli published over a hundred publications that were cited thousands of times. In addition to his lab at TMU, he was an affiliate scientist at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Technology (iBEST) and the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute at St. Michael's Hospital. He also initiated and nurtured collaborations with industry and industrial partners, including a multi-year collaboration with the American company CancerRX and the Toronto Poly Clinic. With Dr. Kevin Rod at the Poly Clinic, he developed a handheld ultrasound device that patients could use to treat osteoarthritis at home, improving patient care and outcomes.
Tavakkoli and former colleagues Arthur Worthington and Graham Pearson from the Physics department at a research event.
Before joining TMU, Tavakkoli spent several years working in industry at Sonablate Corp., where he was instrumental in getting the first therapeutic ultrasound device approved by the FDA. This medical device, designed to treat localized prostate conditions using High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) technology, has helped thousands of patients worldwide.
At a recent memorial, professor Tavakkoli’s colleagues remarked on his standout interest in his undergraduate and graduate students and his joy in seeing them succeed. He was also interested in improving the classroom experience. In 2017, he developed an initiative to run 3D virtual reality hospital room demos in his second-year biomedical engineering course. The project launched just in time for fall 2020, expanding its use to biomedical physics courses and becoming even more crucial as a virtual classroom tool during the pandemic lockdowns.
Tavakkoli was born in Tehran and grew up in Taleghan, Iran. Spending his summers in nature as a child sparked a lifelong interest in mountain climbing and being outdoors. First inspired to study physics by his high school teacher, Tavakkoli’s success in his studies prompted him to move to France, where he earned his doctorate in 1997 at the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1 and where his first daughter was born. Upon moving to Canada, he completed his postdoctoral work with Dr. Richard Cobbold's lab at the University of Toronto and also celebrated the birth of his second daughter. Both girls later attended TMU, graduating in political science and business management respectively.
Tavakkoli and family at a cave tour adventure in Cancun, Mexico. From left: Neda Tavakkoli (daughter), Ferida Shahrokhi (wife), professor Jahan Tavakkoli, Niki Tavakkoli (daughter).
Michael Kolios, a friend, close collaborator, and the Associate Dean of Research, Innovation, and External Partnerships with the Faculty of Science and fellow professor in the Department of Physics, gave a tribute to Tavakkoli at his celebration of life, noting, “We cannot control when or how we die, but we can control how we live. If we focus on acting with virtue, kindness, and courage, we live in a way that brings meaning to our days, knowing that our actions leave a legacy.”
In a memorial message, Dean David Cramb celebrated Tavakkoli’s student connection: “His legacy lives on through his graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, colleagues and friends. Above all else, his love of his family was true and deep. We shall miss him, and he remains in our hearts as a scholar with a deep core of humanity.”
