I hail from Pittsburgh, PA and came to Philadelphia to seek out new experiences. I found many when I was accepted into Temple University in 2009 and later got the opportunity to do undergraduate research. I am an undergraduate chemistry major with a plan to attend graduate school and ultimately pursue a PhD program in a field related to chemistry. I joined the Borguet Group because both the sensor projects and research process interest me. I am currently studying new ways to make surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors that will detect the presence of specific molecules. I am attracted to the the pursuit of finding solutions to real scientific problems, and this project addresses that attraction. In fact, I find the limits of my scientific understanding is tested and expanded every day in this group. There is a lot to be gained from doing this research and I look forward to contributing to and learning from it.

Ashley Truxal was awarded a CARAS Project Grant Award. December 2011.

Ashley Truxal won honorable mention in the category "Best Undergraduate Poster" at the ACS YCC Philadelphia poster session for work on hydrazine sensors with partner, Nicole Haloupek, and their supervising graduate student, Devika Sil.

Ashley's CV