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University · Shenyang · China

Northeastern University

In research, Northeastern University stands highest in Engineering (#67 of 5,901 worldwide), Mechanical Engineering (#24 of 1,319 worldwide) and Control and Systems Engineering (#17 of 804 worldwide), 2022-now. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Metals and Alloys, Mechanical Engineering and Control and Systems Engineering (Metals and Alloys is 17.1× its share of world research).

neu.edu.cnROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#404
of 22,385 · #538 all time
Rank in China
#91
of 2,481
Research works
61k
▲ 51% vs 2018-21
Citations
856k
14.1 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
15.5%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.13×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
18%
world 40%
International
12%
world 18%
Northeastern University

What is Northeastern University 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
EngineeringField #67 of 5,901 17.3%9,494 #115
Mechanical EngineeringSubfield #24 of 1,319 17.1%2,581 #43
Control and Systems EngineeringSubfield #17 of 804 21.3%1,386 #27
Physical SciencesDomain #237 of 10,670 15.9%16,536 #366
Computer ScienceField #156 of 4,417 14.0%2,945 #208
Materials ScienceField #94 of 2,276 13.3%1,911 #198
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringSubfield #127 of 2,176 13.2%1,697 #192
Mechanics of MaterialsSubfield #29 of 482 21.9%662 #76
Civil and Structural EngineeringSubfield #63 of 908 21.7%493 #136
Materials ChemistrySubfield #104 of 1,473 13.9%1,209 #189

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Northeastern University 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 of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022-now. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Engineering#115 #67
  2. Mechanical Engineering#43 #24
  3. Control and Systems Engineering#27 #17
  4. Physical Sciences#366 #237
  5. Computer Science#208 #156
  6. Materials Science#198 #94
  7. Electrical and Electronic Engineering#192 #127
  8. Mechanics of Materials#76 #29
  9. Civil and Structural Engineering#136 #63
  10. Materials Chemistry#189 #104
all time2022-now, better2022-now, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

Which fields of science does Northeastern University work in?

In 2022-now, 89% of research at Northeastern University is in Physical Sciences, 5% in Social Sciences. Its largest fields are Engineering (51%), Computer Science (16%), Materials Science (10%). It does 2.3× the world's share of Physical Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 19k fractional works · 89.1% of its workEngineering: 11k fractional works · 50.7% of its workMechanical Engineering: 2,886 fractional works · 13.8% of its workElectrical and Electronic Engineering: 1,881 fractional works · 9.0% of its workControl and Systems Engineering: 1,525 fractional works · 7.3% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 918 fractional works · 4.4% of its workMechanics of Materials: 736 fractional works · 3.5% of its workAerospace Engineering: 657 fractional works · 3.1% of its workCivil and Structural Engineering: 571 fractional works · 2.7% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 315 fractional works · 1.5% of its workAutomotive Engineering: 266 fractional works · 1.3% of its workComputational Mechanics: 265 fractional works · 1.3% of its workOcean Engineering: 185 fractional works · 0.9% of its workBuilding and Construction: 164 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSafety, Risk, Reliability and Quality: 123 fractional works · 0.6% of its workMedia Technology: 97 fractional works · 0.5% of its workComputer Science: 3,367 fractional works · 16.1% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 1,109 fractional works · 5.3% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 792 fractional works · 3.8% of its workComputer Networks and Communications: 717 fractional works · 3.4% of its workInformation Systems: 259 fractional works · 1.2% of its workComputational Theory and Mathematics: 239 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSignal Processing: 109 fractional works · 0.5% of its workHardware and Architecture: 43 fractional works · 0.2% of its workHuman-Computer Interaction: 42 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 57 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMaterials Science: 2,186 fractional works · 10.5% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 1,385 fractional works · 6.6% of its workElectronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials: 270 fractional works · 1.3% of its workBiomaterials: 160 fractional works · 0.8% of its workMetals and Alloys: 118 fractional works · 0.6% of its workPolymers and Plastics: 105 fractional works · 0.5% of its workCeramics and Composites: 97 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 50 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEnvironmental Science: 837 fractional works · 4.0% of its workWater Science and Technology: 264 fractional works · 1.3% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 145 fractional works · 0.7% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 94 fractional works · 0.5% of its workManagement, Monitoring, Policy and Law: 83 fractional works · 0.4% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 71 fractional works · 0.3% of its workHealth, Toxicology and Mutagenesis: 50 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPollution: 46 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 84 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 405 fractional works · 1.9% of its workAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics: 139 fractional works · 0.7% of its workStatistical and Nonlinear Physics: 128 fractional works · 0.6% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 59 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 79 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEnergy: 351 fractional works · 1.7% of its workRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment: 296 fractional works · 1.4% of its workEnergy Engineering and Power Technology: 48 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 7 fractional works · 0.0% of its workChemistry: 270 fractional works · 1.3% of its workInorganic Chemistry: 83 fractional works · 0.4% of its workOrganic Chemistry: 74 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSpectroscopy: 45 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 68 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 231 fractional works · 1.1% of its workGeophysics: 70 fractional works · 0.3% of its workAtmospheric Science: 59 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 102 fractional works · 0.5% of its workChemical Engineering: 222 fractional works · 1.1% of its workBioengineering: 88 fractional works · 0.4% of its workCatalysis: 70 fractional works · 0.3% of its workFluid Flow and Transfer Processes: 56 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 7 fractional works · 0.0% of its workMathematics: 157 fractional works · 0.8% of its workSocial Sciences: 1,106 fractional works · 5.3% of its workSocial Sciences: 271 fractional works · 1.3% of its workSociology and Political Science: 110 fractional works · 0.5% of its workTransportation: 43 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 118 fractional works · 0.6% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 264 fractional works · 1.3% of its workStrategy and Management: 68 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMarketing: 60 fractional works · 0.3% of its workManagement Information Systems: 50 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 86 fractional works · 0.4% of its workDecision Sciences: 215 fractional works · 1.0% of its workManagement Science and Operations Research: 139 fractional works · 0.7% of its workStatistics, Probability and Uncertainty: 59 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 17 fractional works · 0.1% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 192 fractional works · 0.9% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 151 fractional works · 0.7% of its workSmaller subfields together: 40 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPsychology: 127 fractional works · 0.6% of its workSocial Psychology: 55 fractional works · 0.3% of its workExperimental and Cognitive Psychology: 45 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 27 fractional works · 0.1% of its workArts and Humanities: 36 fractional works · 0.2% of its workLife Sciences: 596 fractional works · 2.9% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 322 fractional works · 1.5% of its workMolecular Biology: 231 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSmaller subfields together: 91 fractional works · 0.4% of its workNeuroscience: 145 fractional works · 0.7% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 83 fractional works · 0.4% of its workNeurology: 45 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 18 fractional works · 0.1% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 100 fractional works · 0.5% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 22 fractional works · 0.1% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 7 fractional works · 0.0% of its workHealth Sciences: 576 fractional works · 2.8% of its workMedicine: 493 fractional works · 2.4% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 123 fractional works · 0.6% of its workPulmonary and Respiratory Medicine: 44 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 327 fractional works · 1.6% of its workHealth Professions: 58 fractional works · 0.3% of its workDentistry: 15 fractional works · 0.1% of its workNursing: 8 fractional works · 0.0% of its workALL ITS WORKNortheasternUniversity21kfractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences3%Physical Sciences89%Health Sciences3%Social Sciences5%

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 26 fields, with their numbers
    1. Engineering11k50.7%
    2. Computer Science3,36716.1%
    3. Materials Science2,18610.5%
    4. Environmental Science8374.0%
    5. Physics and Astronomy4051.9%
    6. Energy3511.7%
    7. Chemistry2701.3%
    8. Earth and Planetary Sciences2311.1%
    9. Chemical Engineering2221.1%
    10. Mathematics1570.8%
    1. Social Sciences2711.3%
    2. Business, Management and Accounting2641.3%
    3. Decision Sciences2151.0%
    4. Economics, Econometrics and Finance1920.9%
    5. Psychology1270.6%
    6. Arts and Humanities360.2%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3221.5%
    2. Neuroscience1450.7%
    3. Agricultural and Biological Sciences1000.5%
    4. Immunology and Microbiology220.1%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics70.0%
    1. Medicine4932.4%
    2. Health Professions580.3%
    3. Dentistry150.1%
    4. Nursing80.0%
    5. Veterinary10.0%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

What does Northeastern University specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Metals and Alloys takes 17.1× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Metals and AlloysSubfield · 117.8 works17×
  2. Mechanical EngineeringSubfield · 2,886.2 works7.5×
  3. Control and Systems EngineeringSubfield · 1,524.6 works6.7×
  4. Ceramics and CompositesSubfield · 97.4 works6.7×
  5. BioengineeringSubfield · 88.5 works6.4×
  6. Mechanics of MaterialsSubfield · 735.6 works4.9×
  7. Computer Networks and CommunicationsSubfield · 717.2 works3.9×
  8. Fluid Flow and Transfer ProcessesSubfield · 56.0 works3.5×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

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: 0.10× its world share, 100 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.29× its world share, 322 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.10× its world share, 22 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.43× its world share, 146 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.10× its world share, 7 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 3.04× its world share, 222 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.82× its world share, 270 worksChemistryComputer Science: 2.07× its world share, 3,367 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.71× its world share, 231 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 1.83× its world share, 351 worksEnergyEngineering: 3.38× its world share, 11k worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.81× its world share, 837 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 3.00× its world share, 2,186 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.64× its world share, 157 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 0.87× its world share, 405 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.15× its world share, 15 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.10× its world share, 58 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.12× its world share, 493 worksMedicineNursing: 0.08× its world share, 8 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.05× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.06× its world share, 36 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.39× its world share, 264 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.07× its world share, 216 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.43× its world share, 192 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.20× its world share, 127 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.10× its world share, 271 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Engineering, 3.4×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 26 fields, with their numbers
  1. Engineering3.38×11k works
  2. Chemical Engineering3.04×222 works
  3. Materials Science3.00×2,186 works
  4. Computer Science2.07×3,367 works
  5. Energy1.83×351 works
  6. Decision Sciences1.07×216 works
  7. Physics and Astronomy0.87×405 works
  8. Chemistry0.82×270 works
  9. Environmental Science0.81×837 works
  10. Earth and Planetary Sciences0.71×231 works
  11. Mathematics0.64×157 works
  12. Neuroscience0.43×146 works
  13. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.43×192 works
  14. Business, Management and Accounting0.39×264 works
  15. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.29×322 works
  16. Psychology0.20×127 works
  17. Dentistry0.15×15 works
  18. Medicine0.12×493 works
  19. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.10×100 works
  20. Immunology and Microbiology0.10×22 works
  21. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.10×7 works
  22. Health Professions0.10×58 works
  23. Social Sciences0.10×271 works
  24. Nursing0.08×8 works
  25. Arts and Humanities0.06×36 works
  26. Veterinary0.05×1 works

Who are the top researchers at Northeastern University?

Ranked on the quality score, Dake Xu, Junxin Chen and C.A. Tang lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Northeastern University.

  1. 1 Dake Xu China · #8,545 worldwide 17k citations · 376 works
  2. 2 Junxin Chen China · #33,736 worldwide 8.7k citations · 314 works
  3. 3 C.A. Tang China · #33,845 worldwide 6.9k citations · 105 works
  4. 4 Xiaoqi Sun China · #37,673 worldwide 9.6k citations · 157 works
  5. 5 Tian-Nuo Li China · #41,759 worldwide 534 citations · 50 works
  6. 6 Yanfeng Dong China · #44,808 worldwide 10k citations · 117 works
  7. 7 Xin Zhang China · #45,872 worldwide 15k citations · 549 works
  8. 8 Jingping Qiu China · #46,819 worldwide 4.5k citations · 101 works
  9. 9 Ting‐Feng Yi China · #49,337 worldwide 18k citations · 392 works
  10. 10 Yingliang Zhao China · #53,030 worldwide 2.5k citations · 67 works
All ranked researchers at Northeastern University

What are the most cited papers from Northeastern University?

The most cited paper from Northeastern University is "Present and Future of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering" (Judith Langer et al., 2019), with 3,910 citations. Next come "Carbon Materials for Chemical Capacitive Energy Storage" (2,965) and "Remaining useful life estimation in prognostics using deep convolution neural networks" (1,758).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Present and Future of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Judith Langer et al. · ACS Nano Open access 3 Sep 2019 3,910
2 Carbon Materials for Chemical Capacitive Energy Storage Yunpu Zhai, Yuqian Dou, Dongyuan Zhao et al. · Advanced Materials 26 Sep 2011 2,965
3 Remaining useful life estimation in prognostics using deep convolution neural networks Xiang Li, Qian Ding, Jian‐Qiao Sun · Reliability Engineering & System Safety Open access 2 Dec 2017 1,758
4 A critical review on solvent extraction of rare earths from aqueous solutions Feng Xie, Ting An Zhang, David Bruce Dreisinger et al. · Minerals Engineering Open access 15 Nov 2013 1,444
5 An End-to-End Steel Surface Defect Detection Approach via Fusing Multiple Hierarchical Features Yu He, Kechen Song, Qinggang Meng et al. · IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement Open access 8 May 2019 1,338
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Northeastern University?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Mechanical Properties, Microstructure, Deep Learning, Neural Networks, Machine Learning, Grain Refinement, Microstructural Evolution and Metallurgy.

▲ 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 Learning1,911▲ 2.6×84 topics
  2. Mechanical Properties1,484▲ 7.2×39 topics
  3. Machine Learning1,415▲ 2.0×87 topics
  4. Microstructure1,270▲ 12×19 topics
  5. Neural Networks1,141▲ 3.5×38 topics
  6. Nanomaterials647▲ 3.0×20 topics
  7. Energy Efficiency632▲ 3.3×38 topics
  8. Energy Storage609▲ 4.5×12 topics
  9. Grain Refinement593▲ 25×4 topics
  10. Nanoparticles548▲ 2.1×43 topics
  11. Graphene512▲ 3.6×12 topics
  12. Microstructural Evolution507▲ 17×4 topics
  13. Metallurgy506▲ 40×2 topics
  14. Lithium-ion Batteries468▲ 5.4×4 topics
  15. Nonlinear Systems464▲ 10×8 topics
  16. Cathode Materials448▲ 5.5×3 topics
  17. Metal Recovery408▲ 10×3 topics
  18. Vibration Analysis375▲ 6.7×9 topics
  19. Stability Analysis346▲ 11×6 topics
  20. Optimization343▲ 3.7×26 topics
  21. Databases328▲ 56×1 topic
  22. Thermochemical328▲ 56×1 topic
  23. Multi-Agent Systems319▲ 8.0×6 topics
  24. Corrosion Behavior314▲ 19×3 topics
  25. Rechargeable Batteries309▲ 5.6×2 topics
  26. Numerical Simulation296▲ 4.9×14 topics
  27. Event-Triggered Control293▲ 21×2 topics
  28. Nonlinear Dynamics273▲ 5.9×9 topics
  29. High-Strength Steels260▲ 38×1 topic
  30. Martensite Transformation260▲ 38×1 topic
  31. Aerospace Applications257▲ 13×3 topics
  32. Neural Network252▲ 6.7×9 topics
  33. Distributed Control251▲ 11×3 topics
  34. Adaptive Control251▲ 8.9×7 topics
  35. Processing Techniques244▲ 13×2 topics
  36. Grain Boundary Engineering240▲ 18×2 topics
  37. Feedback Control240▲ 7.0×8 topics
  38. Microstructure Evolution238▲ 15×5 topics
  39. Sintering238▲ 9.0×5 topics
  40. Robust Control233▲ 15×3 topics

Which research topics does Northeastern University publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Metallurgical Processes and Thermodynamics, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Steels, Fault Detection and Control Systems and Advancements in Battery Materials.

Metallurgical Processes …328Metallurgical Processes and Thermodynamics: 328 fractional worksMicrostructure and Mecha…260Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Steels: 260 fractional worksFault Detection and Control Systems: 197 fractional worksAdvancements in Battery Materials: 196 fractional worksIron and Steelmaking Pro…194Iron and Steelmaking Processes: 194 fractional worksAluminum Alloy Microstructure Properties: 193 fractional worksAluminum Alloys Composites Properties: 189 fractional worksExtraction and Separatio…187Extraction and Separation Processes: 187 fractional worksMetal Extraction and Bioleaching: 178 fractional worksMetallurgy and Material Forming: 175 fractional works
Mechanical EngineeringControl and Systems EngineeringElectrical and Electronic EngineeringAerospace Engineering2 others

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

  1. 1 Metallurgical Processes and Thermodynamics Mechanical Engineering 328 works
  2. 2 Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Steels Mechanical Engineering 260 works
  3. 3 Fault Detection and Control Systems Control and Systems Engineering 197 works
  4. 4 Advancements in Battery Materials Electrical and Electronic Engineering 196 works
  5. 5 Iron and Steelmaking Processes Mechanical Engineering 194 works
  6. 6 Aluminum Alloy Microstructure Properties Aerospace Engineering 193 works
  7. 7 Aluminum Alloys Composites Properties Mechanical Engineering 189 works
  8. 8 Extraction and Separation Processes Mechanical Engineering 187 works
  9. 9 Metal Extraction and Bioleaching Biomedical Engineering 178 works
  10. 10 Metallurgy and Material Forming Mechanics of Materials 175 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 available17.9%not open82.1%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors11.9%domestic only88.1%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Northeastern University's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 51% higher 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 Northeastern University as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.092% in 2024.

still counting0.050%0.10%Northeastern University0.085% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Northeastern University 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%Northeastern University15.4% in 2025all institutions10.0% in 2025200020102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 16.6% in 2023.

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Northeastern University on Science Explorer

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Its overall standing, then the domains, fields and subfields where Northeastern University is in the world's top ten or its top 1%. Each has an image of its own.

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