While attending a conference in Boston, engineering doctoral student Kyle Gilroy went to a presentation by Georgia Institute of Technology researcher Younan Xia, a leader in the development and application of next generation nanomaterials.

“I went up to talk to him afterwards and he knew who I was,” said Gilroy.

It turns out that Gilroy’s faculty advisor, Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Svetlana Neretina, had presented Gilroy’s work months earlier during an invited talk at Georgia Tech, which Xia had attended.

“He asked me to send him my resume, which I did, and he e-mailed me back offering me a post-doctoral position,” Gilroy said. “I never thought I would end up working with someone like that. He has literally written the book on this field.”

Gilroy, who will graduate with a perfect 4.0 grade point average, came to Temple four years ago after earning his bachelor’s degree in biomedical physics, with a minor in mechanical engineering, at the College of New Jersey.

“My older brother is a doctoral student in psychology at Temple, so when I visited him, I became really excited about the campus,” he said. “I met Mohammad Kiani, who was the chair of mechanical engineering at the time, and we talked about my interests. I also saw that Svetlana was working on photovoltaics, so everything was right up my alley.”

Working under Neretina—who has been a great advisor, he said—over the past four years, Gilroy has gained a tremendous amount of experience collaborating with researchers in mechanical engineering, chemistry and physics. He has been the lead author or co-author on about 12 papers that have published in a variety of peer-reviewed journals and expects at least two more to be accepted for publication in the near future.

“There is only so much you can do with your own perspectives and opinions,” Gilroy said. “When you hear other people’s ideas and perspectives, it really helps you to expand your projects and go down the right path.

“The research group that I’m a part of here at Temple is like a family; everyone is extremely close,” he added. “We’re constantly talking with one another, pushing one another and helping one another. That’s the best way to get research done: being collaborative.”

Gilroy said he plans on a career in nanotechnology, with a possible focus on energy applications.

“Coming to Temple really changed everything for me. It really set me up for this next step at Georgia Tech,” he said. Gilroy now heads to a post-doctoral position that will set him up for yet another step—and more recognition—in the future.