Ashley Bucsek

Ashley Bucsek is an Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering. Her research focuses on the mechanical behavior of materials, particularly through micromechanical modeling and in situ/in operando characterization techniques like 3D X-ray imaging and diffraction.

• Current affiliations: ASM International Shape Memory & Superelastic Technologies President (elect), CHESS User Executive Committee, Advanced Photon Source User's Organization, PRISMS Center (DOE-BES).
• Key research areas: Shape memory alloys, lightweight metals, phase transformations, energy conversion.

Her work combines cutting-edge X-ray diffraction microscopy with micromechanical theory to study material deformation and microstructural evolution, supported by grants from the NSF, AFOSR, and DOE-BES. Collaborations span mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, and materials science.

Scientific awards include the NSF CAREER Award (2022), AFOSR Young Investigator honor (2022), and the William N. Findley Award (2023). She also holds leadership roles in synchrotron user organizations and advisory boards.

The Bucsek Group actively trains graduate and undergraduate researchers, with students advancing to PhD candidacy, publishing in journals like Acta Materialia, and securing internships at national labs. The group's innovations include compact 3D X-ray microscopy systems for smaller labs and studies on non-Schmid behavior in HCP materials.