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Funder · Cambridge · United States

Draper Laboratory

In research, Draper Laboratory stands highest in Physical Sciences (#3,602 of 10,670 worldwide), 2022-now.

draper.comROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#9,065
of 22,385 · #3,732 all time
Rank in United States
#1,227
of 3,332
Research works
2.6k
▼ 24% vs 2018-21
Citations
56k
21.4 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
10.3%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.02×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
18%
world 40%
International
6%
world 18%
Draper Laboratory

What is Draper Laboratory known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022-now, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #3,602 of 10,670 9.7%106 #2097

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Draper Laboratory sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which fields of science does Draper Laboratory work in?

In 2022-now, 63% of research at Draper Laboratory is in Physical Sciences, 16% in Health Sciences. Its largest fields are Engineering (35%), Medicine (14%), Computer Science (12%). It does 1.6× the world's share of Physical Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 122 fractional works · 62.7% of its workEngineering: 68 fractional works · 34.7% of its workAerospace Engineering: 20 fractional works · 10.1% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 12 fractional works · 6.4% of its workElectrical and Electronic Engineering: 12 fractional works · 6.3% of its workControl and Systems Engineering: 8 fractional works · 3.9% of its workOcean Engineering: 3 fractional works · 1.6% of its workMechanical Engineering: 3 fractional works · 1.5% of its workAutomotive Engineering: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workSafety, Risk, Reliability and Quality: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workMechanics of Materials: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workComputational Mechanics: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workCivil and Structural Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workMedia Technology: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workComputer Science: 23 fractional works · 11.7% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 8 fractional works · 4.1% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 6 fractional works · 2.9% of its workInformation Systems: 3 fractional works · 1.5% of its workComputer Networks and Communications: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workHardware and Architecture: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workHuman-Computer Interaction: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workComputational Theory and Mathematics: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSoftware: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSignal Processing: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 16 fractional works · 8.0% of its workAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics: 7 fractional works · 3.5% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 5 fractional works · 2.8% of its workInstrumentation: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workStatistical and Nonlinear Physics: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEnvironmental Science: 7 fractional works · 3.6% of its workManagement, Monitoring, Policy and Law: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workEcology: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workHealth, Toxicology and Mutagenesis: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workNature and Landscape Conservation: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workWater Science and Technology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workMaterials Science: 5 fractional works · 2.5% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 3 fractional works · 1.6% of its workElectronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 3 fractional works · 1.4% of its workOceanography: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workAtmospheric Science: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMathematics: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workChemical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workChemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workHealth Sciences: 32 fractional works · 16.2% of its workMedicine: 28 fractional works · 14.3% of its workPharmacology: 3 fractional works · 1.4% of its workEpidemiology: 3 fractional works · 1.4% of its workPhysiology: 2 fractional works · 1.3% of its workPulmonary and Respiratory Medicine: 2 fractional works · 1.1% of its workCardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine: 2 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSurgery: 2 fractional works · 1.0% of its workOncology: 2 fractional works · 1.0% of its workPublic Health, Environmental and Occupational Health: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workInfectious Diseases: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workRehabilitation: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workDermatology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workNeurology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workOrthopedics and Sports Medicine: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPsychiatry and Mental health: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEmergency Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workReproductive Medicine: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 3 fractional works · 1.4% of its workHealth Professions: 3 fractional works · 1.5% of its workGeneral Health Professions: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workPhysical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workOccupational Therapy: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workDentistry: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workNursing: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSocial Sciences: 23 fractional works · 11.7% of its workPsychology: 8 fractional works · 4.2% of its workSocial Psychology: 5 fractional works · 2.6% of its workExperimental and Cognitive Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workClinical Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workApplied Psychology: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workSocial Sciences: 7 fractional works · 3.5% of its workSociology and Political Science: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workEducation: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workPolitical Science and International Relations: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGender Studies: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workTransportation: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workLaw: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSafety Research: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workDecision Sciences: 5 fractional works · 2.5% of its workInformation Systems and Management: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workManagement Science and Operations Research: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workStatistics, Probability and Uncertainty: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workArts and Humanities: 1 fractional works · 0.7% of its workReligious studies: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workManagement Information Systems: 1 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workLife Sciences: 18 fractional works · 9.4% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 8 fractional works · 4.2% of its workMolecular Biology: 5 fractional works · 2.4% of its workCell Biology: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workBiophysics: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 2 fractional works · 0.8% of its workNeuroscience: 5 fractional works · 2.4% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 2 fractional works · 1.2% of its workCellular and Molecular Neuroscience: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDevelopmental Neuroscience: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 4 fractional works · 2.2% of its workPlant Science: 2 fractional works · 0.9% of its workSoil Science: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEcology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workForestry: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.4% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workImmunology: 1 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workALL ITS WORKDraper Laboratory195fractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences9%Physical Sciences63%Health Sciences16%Social Sciences12%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 24 fields, with their numbers
    1. Engineering6834.7%
    2. Computer Science2311.7%
    3. Physics and Astronomy168.0%
    4. Environmental Science73.6%
    5. Materials Science52.5%
    6. Earth and Planetary Sciences31.4%
    7. Mathematics10.7%
    8. Chemical Engineering00.1%
    9. Chemistry00.0%
    1. Medicine2814.3%
    2. Health Professions31.5%
    3. Dentistry00.2%
    4. Nursing00.2%
    1. Psychology84.2%
    2. Social Sciences73.5%
    3. Decision Sciences52.5%
    4. Arts and Humanities10.7%
    5. Business, Management and Accounting10.6%
    6. Economics, Econometrics and Finance00.2%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology84.2%
    2. Neuroscience52.4%
    3. Agricultural and Biological Sciences42.2%
    4. Immunology and Microbiology10.6%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics00.0%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.45× its world share, 4 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.79× its world share, 8 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.57× its world share, 1 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 1.47× its world share, 5 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.09× its world share, 0 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 0.24× its world share, 0 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.03× its world share, 0 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.51× its world share, 23 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.86× its world share, 3 worksEarth and Planetary …Engineering: 2.31× its world share, 68 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.73× its world share, 7 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.72× its world share, 5 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.57× its world share, 1 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 3.58× its world share, 16 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.40× its world share, 0 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.58× its world share, 3 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.75× its world share, 28 worksMedicineNursing: 0.35× its world share, 0 worksNursingArts and Humanities: 0.23× its world share, 1 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.19× its world share, 1 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 2.61× its world share, 5 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.11× its world share, 0 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.37× its world share, 8 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.28× its world share, 7 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Physics and Astronomy, 3.6×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 24 fields, with their numbers
  1. Physics and Astronomy3.58×16 works
  2. Decision Sciences2.61×5 works
  3. Engineering2.31×68 works
  4. Computer Science1.51×23 works
  5. Neuroscience1.47×5 works
  6. Psychology1.37×8 works
  7. Earth and Planetary Sciences0.86×3 works
  8. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.79×8 works
  9. Medicine0.75×28 works
  10. Environmental Science0.73×7 works
  11. Materials Science0.72×5 works
  12. Health Professions0.58×3 works
  13. Immunology and Microbiology0.57×1 works
  14. Mathematics0.57×1 works
  15. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.45×4 works
  16. Dentistry0.40×0 works
  17. Nursing0.35×0 works
  18. Social Sciences0.28×7 works
  19. Chemical Engineering0.24×0 works
  20. Arts and Humanities0.23×1 works
  21. Business, Management and Accounting0.19×1 works
  22. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.11×0 works
  23. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.09×0 works
  24. Chemistry0.03×0 works

Who are the top researchers at Draper Laboratory?

Ranked on the quality score, Brett C. Isenberg, Ashley L. Gard and Jeffrey T. Borenstein lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Draper Laboratory.

  1. 1 Brett C. Isenberg United States · #128,049 worldwide 4.1k citations · 89 works
  2. 2 Ashley L. Gard United States · #314,320 worldwide 1.6k citations · 28 works
  3. 3 Jeffrey T. Borenstein United States · #326,088 worldwide 13k citations · 219 works
  4. 4 Elizabeth E. Marr United States · #333,701 worldwide 1.4k citations · 24 works
  5. 5 Joseph L. Charest United States · #385,725 worldwide 5.3k citations · 62 works
  6. 6 Hesham Azizgolshani United States · #421,899 worldwide 896 citations · 20 works
  7. 7 Sarah L. Tao United States · #516,085 worldwide 2.4k citations · 39 works
  8. 8 Jonathan R. Coppeta United States · #659,906 worldwide 1.9k citations · 68 works
  9. 9 José Trevejo United States · #798,540 worldwide 2.2k citations · 27 works
  10. 10 Juha-Pekka Laine United States · #868,858 worldwide 2.8k citations · 26 works
All ranked researchers at Draper Laboratory

What are the most cited papers from Draper Laboratory?

The most cited paper from Draper Laboratory is "The Reuven Ramaty High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI)" (R. P. Lin et al., 2002), with 1,802 citations. Next come "Microscale technologies for tissue engineering and biology" (1,567) and "Deterministic phase retrieval: a Green’s function solution" (1,428).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 The Reuven Ramaty High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) R. P. Lin et al. · Solar Physics Open access Nov 2002 1,802
2 Microscale technologies for tissue engineering and biology Ali Khademhosseini, Róbert Langer, Jeffrey T. Borenstein et al. · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 13 Feb 2006 1,567
3 Deterministic phase retrieval: a Green’s function solution Michael Reed Teague · Journal of the Optical Society of America Nov 1983 1,428
4 A Review of Strain Analysis Using Electron Backscatter Diffraction Stuart I. Wright, Matthew M. Nowell, David P. Field · Microscopy and Microanalysis 22 Mar 2011 1,337
5 Oscillating foils of high propulsive efficiency Jamie M. Anderson, Knut Streitlien, David Barrett et al. · Journal of Fluid Mechanics 10 Apr 1998 1,295
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Draper Laboratory?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Optimal Control, Autonomous Vehicles, Orbit Determination, Trajectory Optimization, Pose Estimation, Solar Sail, Spacecraft Formation Flying and On-Orbit Servicing.

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's

Size is fractional works in 2022-now in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Deep Learning9▲ 1.28×32 topics
  2. Machine Learning8▲ 1.16×22 topics
  3. Autonomous Vehicles5▲ 12×3 topics
  4. Optimal Control5▲ 32×3 topics
  5. Orbit Determination4▲ 47×2 topics
  6. Tissue Engineering4▲ 3.5×5 topics
  7. Pose Estimation4▲ 18×3 topics
  8. Trajectory Optimization4▲ 34×2 topics
  9. Solar Sail4▲ 124×1 topic
  10. Spacecraft Formation Flying4▲ 124×1 topic
  11. On-Orbit Servicing4▲ 86×1 topic
  12. Space Debris4▲ 86×1 topic
  13. Regenerative Medicine4▲ 7.5×4 topics
  14. Cell Culture4▲ 16×2 topics
  15. Microfluidic Devices4▲ 15×2 topics
  16. Sensor Fusion4▲ 17×3 topics
  17. Biosensors3▲ 3.5×6 topics
  18. Hydrogels3▲ 8.9×2 topics
  19. Bioinks3▲ 28×1 topic
  20. Bioprinting3▲ 28×1 topic
  21. Solar System Abundances3▲ 35×1 topic
  22. Terrestrial Planets3▲ 35×1 topic
  23. Driver Behavior3▲ 20×2 topics
  24. Human Factors3▲ 19×2 topics
  25. Optical Modulators3▲ 11×3 topics
  26. Automation3▲ 20×1 topic
  27. Multi-Agent Systems3▲ 7.5×3 topics
  28. Trust3▲ 5.1×1 topic
  29. Biomechanics3▲ 4.5×7 topics
  30. Collision Avoidance3▲ 7.7×4 topics
  31. Robotics3▲ 5.5×5 topics
  32. Thermal Behavior2▲ 32×2 topics
  33. Raman Lasers2▲ 12×2 topics
  34. Actuators2▲ 7.3×4 topics
  35. Integrated Circuits2▲ 8.1×3 topics
  36. Silicon Photonics2▲ 12×2 topics
  37. Complex Adaptive Systems2▲ 38×2 topics
  38. Lymphoma2▲ 7.2×2 topics
  39. Microcavities2▲ 11×2 topics
  40. Nanophotonic Waveguides2▲ 12×1 topic

Which research topics does Draper Laboratory publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Spacecraft Dynamics and Control, Space Satellite Systems and Control, Astro and Planetary Science and 3D Printing in Biomedical Research.

Spacecraft Dynamics and …4Spacecraft Dynamics and Control: 4 fractional worksSpace Satellite Systems …4Space Satellite Systems and Control: 4 fractional worksAstro and Planetary Scie…3Astro and Planetary Science: 3 fractional works3D Printing in Biomedica…33D Printing in Biomedical Research: 3 fractional worksHuman-Automation Interaction and Safety: 3 fractional worksPhotonic and Optical Devices: 2 fractional worksSystems Engineering Meth…2Systems Engineering Methodologies and Applications: 2 fractional worksRobotic Path Planning Algorithms: 2 fractional worksTarget Tracking and Data Fusion in Sensor Networks: 2 fractional worksPhase-change materials and chalcogenides: 2 fractional works
Aerospace EngineeringAstronomy and AstrophysicsBiomedical EngineeringSocial Psychology5 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Spacecraft Dynamics and Control Aerospace Engineering 4 works
  2. 2 Space Satellite Systems and Control Aerospace Engineering 4 works
  3. 3 Astro and Planetary Science Astronomy and Astrophysics 3 works
  4. 4 3D Printing in Biomedical Research Biomedical Engineering 3 works
  5. 5 Human-Automation Interaction and Safety Social Psychology 3 works
  6. 6 Photonic and Optical Devices Electrical and Electronic Engineering 2 works
  7. 7 Systems Engineering Methodologies and Applications Control and Systems Engineering 2 works
  8. 8 Robotic Path Planning Algorithms Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition 2 works
  9. 9 Target Tracking and Data Fusion in Sensor Networks Artificial Intelligence 2 works
  10. 10 Phase-change materials and chalcogenides Materials Chemistry 2 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world's own shares: the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available18.1%not open81.9%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors6.0%domestic only94.0%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Draper Laboratory's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 24% lower than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon: one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Draper Laboratory as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.00079% in 2024.

still counting0.010%0.020%Draper Laboratory0.00061% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Draper Laboratory over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

Year by year, against all institutions in the same year.

still counting10%20%30%all institutions10.0% in 2025Draper Laboratory7.7% in 2025200020102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 20.2% in 2008.

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Draper Laboratory on Science Explorer

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