María Gabriela Fernández Manteca

Mariela Fernández Manteca is a PhD student at the Photonic Engineering Group of the University of Cantabria. She holds a B.Sc. in Physics (2020), specializing in Fundamental Physics, and a Master’s degree in Science and Engineering of Light (2021) with a specialization on Life and Health Sciences, both from the University of Cantabria. From 2021 to 2023, she worked as a research support technician at the Microscopy Unit of IDIVAL, where she was primarily involved in Raman spectroscopy studies. In 2023, she received a predoctoral fellowship from IDIVAL to develop her PhD thesis. Her current research focuses on optimizing Raman spectroscopy systems for biomedical applications through advances in optical instrumentation and computational analysis. By combining these approaches, she aims to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of molecular compound identification in complex samples. These advances have been applied to the automated classification of bacterial and cyanobacterial species, as well as to the analysis of blood-derived and archaeological samples, adapting measurement and data processing strategies to the specific requirements of each study. This work has led to publications in high-impact journals and presentations at international conferences, demonstrating the growing potential of Raman spectroscopy in medical diagnostics and environmental research.