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University · Xi'an · China

Northwestern Polytechnical University

In research, Northwestern Polytechnical University stands highest in Engineering (#28 of 5,901 worldwide), Physical Sciences (#54 of 10,670 worldwide) and Mechanical Engineering (#8 of 1,319 worldwide), 2022-now. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Ceramics and Composites, Aerospace Engineering and Computational Mechanics (Ceramics and Composites is 12.8× its share of world research).

World rank, 2022-now
#174
of 22,385 · #276 all time
Rank in China
#41
of 2,481
Research works
87k
▲ 41% vs 2018-21
Citations
1.2M
13.7 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
16.4%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.38×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
20%
world 40%
International
12%
world 18%

What is Northwestern Polytechnical 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 #28 of 5,901 16.5%12,524 #57
Physical SciencesDomain #54 of 10,670 16.5%21,251 #102
Mechanical EngineeringSubfield #8 of 1,319 18.9%2,132 #22
Aerospace EngineeringSubfield #6 of 785 16.7%2,588 #15
Mechanics of MaterialsSubfield #7 of 482 21.0%874 #25
Computer ScienceField #77 of 4,417 15.4%3,786 #177
Materials ScienceField #42 of 2,276 19.4%2,644 #102
Control and Systems EngineeringSubfield #15 of 804 13.9%1,198 #31
Materials ChemistrySubfield #30 of 1,473 18.2%1,455 #80
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringSubfield #48 of 2,176 14.7%2,050 #94

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Northwestern Polytechnical 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#57 #28
  2. Physical Sciences#102 #54
  3. Mechanical Engineering#22 #8
  4. Aerospace Engineering#15 #6
  5. Mechanics of Materials#25 #7
  6. Computer Science#177 #77
  7. Materials Science#102 #42
  8. Control and Systems Engineering#31 #15
  9. Materials Chemistry#80 #30
  10. Electrical and Electronic Engineering#94 #48
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 Northwestern Polytechnical University work in?

In 2022-now, 90% of research at Northwestern Polytechnical University is in Physical Sciences, 5% in Social Sciences. Its largest fields are Engineering (53%), Computer Science (16%), Materials Science (11%). It does 2.3× the world's share of Physical Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 24k fractional works · 89.8% of its workEngineering: 14k fractional works · 52.7% of its workAerospace Engineering: 2,923 fractional works · 11.0% of its workMechanical Engineering: 2,394 fractional works · 9.0% of its workElectrical and Electronic Engineering: 2,249 fractional works · 8.5% of its workControl and Systems Engineering: 1,299 fractional works · 4.9% of its workComputational Mechanics: 1,003 fractional works · 3.8% of its workMechanics of Materials: 974 fractional works · 3.7% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 959 fractional works · 3.6% of its workCivil and Structural Engineering: 567 fractional works · 2.1% of its workOcean Engineering: 411 fractional works · 1.6% of its workAutomotive Engineering: 367 fractional works · 1.4% of its workMedia Technology: 313 fractional works · 1.2% of its workIndustrial and Manufacturing Engineering: 259 fractional works · 1.0% of its workSafety, Risk, Reliability and Quality: 124 fractional works · 0.5% of its workBuilding and Construction: 102 fractional works · 0.4% of its workComputer Science: 4,256 fractional works · 16.1% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 1,395 fractional works · 5.3% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 1,257 fractional works · 4.7% of its workComputer Networks and Communications: 615 fractional works · 2.3% of its workSignal Processing: 329 fractional works · 1.2% of its workComputational Theory and Mathematics: 254 fractional works · 1.0% of its workInformation Systems: 199 fractional works · 0.8% of its workHuman-Computer Interaction: 62 fractional works · 0.2% of its workHardware and Architecture: 53 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 92 fractional works · 0.3% of its workMaterials Science: 2,950 fractional works · 11.1% of its workMaterials Chemistry: 1,636 fractional works · 6.2% of its workElectronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials: 523 fractional works · 2.0% of its workPolymers and Plastics: 307 fractional works · 1.2% of its workCeramics and Composites: 236 fractional works · 0.9% of its workBiomaterials: 127 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSurfaces, Coatings and Films: 57 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 63 fractional works · 0.2% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 685 fractional works · 2.6% of its workStatistical and Nonlinear Physics: 229 fractional works · 0.9% of its workAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics: 227 fractional works · 0.9% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 86 fractional works · 0.3% of its workCondensed Matter Physics: 73 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 69 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEnvironmental Science: 502 fractional works · 1.9% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 126 fractional works · 0.5% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 111 fractional works · 0.4% of its workWater Science and Technology: 62 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 203 fractional works · 0.8% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 375 fractional works · 1.4% of its workOceanography: 178 fractional works · 0.7% of its workAtmospheric Science: 97 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 100 fractional works · 0.4% of its workChemistry: 332 fractional works · 1.3% of its workOrganic Chemistry: 149 fractional works · 0.6% of its workInorganic Chemistry: 78 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 105 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEnergy: 302 fractional works · 1.1% of its workRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment: 273 fractional works · 1.0% of its workSmaller subfields together: 29 fractional works · 0.1% of its workMathematics: 258 fractional works · 1.0% of its workApplied Mathematics: 86 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 171 fractional works · 0.6% of its workChemical Engineering: 164 fractional works · 0.6% of its workFluid Flow and Transfer Processes: 71 fractional works · 0.3% of its workCatalysis: 60 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 33 fractional works · 0.1% of its workSocial Sciences: 1,270 fractional works · 4.8% of its workDecision Sciences: 369 fractional works · 1.4% of its workStatistics, Probability and Uncertainty: 210 fractional works · 0.8% of its workManagement Science and Operations Research: 139 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 20 fractional works · 0.1% of its workSocial Sciences: 275 fractional works · 1.0% of its workSociology and Political Science: 105 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 170 fractional works · 0.6% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 265 fractional works · 1.0% of its workStrategy and Management: 91 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 174 fractional works · 0.7% of its workPsychology: 152 fractional works · 0.6% of its workSocial Psychology: 68 fractional works · 0.3% of its workExperimental and Cognitive Psychology: 59 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 25 fractional works · 0.1% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 144 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 110 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 33 fractional works · 0.1% of its workArts and Humanities: 66 fractional works · 0.2% of its workLife Sciences: 826 fractional works · 3.1% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 451 fractional works · 1.7% of its workMolecular Biology: 283 fractional works · 1.1% of its workSmaller subfields together: 167 fractional works · 0.6% of its workNeuroscience: 225 fractional works · 0.9% of its workCognitive Neuroscience: 144 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 82 fractional works · 0.3% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 110 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPlant Science: 56 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 54 fractional works · 0.2% of its workImmunology and Microbiology: 27 fractional works · 0.1% of its workPharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 13 fractional works · 0.0% of its workHealth Sciences: 604 fractional works · 2.3% of its workMedicine: 519 fractional works · 2.0% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 107 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 413 fractional works · 1.6% of its workHealth Professions: 59 fractional works · 0.2% of its workNursing: 13 fractional works · 0.1% of its workDentistry: 11 fractional works · 0.0% of its workALL ITS WORKNorthwesternPolytechnical…26kfractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences3%Physical Sciences90%Health Sciences2%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. Engineering14k52.7%
    2. Computer Science4,25616.1%
    3. Materials Science2,95011.1%
    4. Physics and Astronomy6852.6%
    5. Environmental Science5021.9%
    6. Earth and Planetary Sciences3751.4%
    7. Chemistry3321.3%
    8. Energy3021.1%
    9. Mathematics2581.0%
    10. Chemical Engineering1640.6%
    1. Decision Sciences3691.4%
    2. Social Sciences2751.0%
    3. Business, Management and Accounting2651.0%
    4. Psychology1520.6%
    5. Economics, Econometrics and Finance1440.5%
    6. Arts and Humanities660.2%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology4511.7%
    2. Neuroscience2250.9%
    3. Agricultural and Biological Sciences1100.4%
    4. Immunology and Microbiology270.1%
    5. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics130.0%
    1. Medicine5192.0%
    2. Health Professions590.2%
    3. Nursing130.1%
    4. Dentistry110.0%
    5. Veterinary10.0%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

What does Northwestern Polytechnical University specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Ceramics and Composites takes 12.8× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Ceramics and CompositesSubfield · 236.1 works13×
  2. Aerospace EngineeringSubfield · 2,923.0 works9.4×
  3. Computational MechanicsSubfield · 1,003.3 works6.5×
  4. Mechanics of MaterialsSubfield · 973.6 works5.2×
  5. Mechanical EngineeringSubfield · 2,393.9 works4.9×
  6. Statistics, Probability and UncertaintySubfield · 209.7 works4.7×
  7. Control and Systems EngineeringSubfield · 1,299.5 works4.5×
← 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: 0.09× its world share, 110 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.32× its world share, 450 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.10× its world share, 27 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.52× its world share, 226 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.14× its world share, 13 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 1.77× its world share, 164 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.80× its world share, 332 worksChemistryComputer Science: 2.07× its world share, 4,256 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.90× its world share, 375 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 1.24× its world share, 302 worksEnergyEngineering: 3.51× its world share, 14k worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.38× its world share, 502 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 3.19× its world share, 2,950 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.83× its world share, 258 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 1.16× its world share, 685 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.09× its world share, 11 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.08× its world share, 59 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.10× its world share, 519 worksMedicineNursing: 0.10× its world share, 13 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.03× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.09× its world share, 66 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.31× its world share, 265 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.44× its world share, 369 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.25× its world share, 144 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.19× its world share, 152 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.08× its world share, 275 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Engineering, 3.5×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 26 fields, with their numbers
  1. Engineering3.51×14k works
  2. Materials Science3.19×2,950 works
  3. Computer Science2.07×4,256 works
  4. Chemical Engineering1.77×164 works
  5. Decision Sciences1.44×369 works
  6. Energy1.24×302 works
  7. Physics and Astronomy1.16×685 works
  8. Earth and Planetary Sciences0.90×375 works
  9. Mathematics0.83×258 works
  10. Chemistry0.80×332 works
  11. Neuroscience0.52×226 works
  12. Environmental Science0.38×502 works
  13. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.32×450 works
  14. Business, Management and Accounting0.31×265 works
  15. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.25×144 works
  16. Psychology0.19×152 works
  17. Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics0.14×13 works
  18. Immunology and Microbiology0.10×27 works
  19. Medicine0.10×519 works
  20. Nursing0.10×13 works
  21. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.09×110 works
  22. Dentistry0.09×11 works
  23. Arts and Humanities0.09×66 works
  24. Health Professions0.08×59 works
  25. Social Sciences0.08×275 works
  26. Veterinary0.03×1 works

Who are the top researchers at Northwestern Polytechnical University?

Ranked on the quality score, Junwei Gu, Kunpeng Ruan and Hongjing Wu lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Northwestern Polytechnical University.

  1. 1 Junwei Gu China · #115 worldwide 46k citations · 360 works
  2. 2 Kunpeng Ruan China · #705 worldwide 15k citations · 80 works
  3. 3 Hongjing Wu China · #724 worldwide 25k citations · 354 works
  4. 4 Panbo Liu China · #753 worldwide 14k citations · 126 works
  5. 5 Cao Guan China · #1,000 worldwide 22k citations · 182 works
  6. 6 Mukun He China · #1,115 worldwide 8.7k citations · 77 works
  7. 7 Gong Cheng China · #4,841 worldwide 22k citations · 217 works
  8. 8 Yongqiang Guo China · #5,815 worldwide 13k citations · 131 works
  9. 9 Chaobo Liang China · #9,051 worldwide 10k citations · 71 works
  10. 10 Shengxi Zhou China · #12,353 worldwide 13k citations · 260 works
All ranked researchers at Northwestern Polytechnical University

What are the most cited papers from Northwestern Polytechnical University?

The most cited paper from Northwestern Polytechnical University is "Least Squares Generative Adversarial Networks" (Xudong Mao, Qing Li, Haoran Xie et al., 2017), with 5,285 citations. Next come "Remote Sensing Image Scene Classification: Benchmark and State of the Art" (2,701) and "Object detection in optical remote sensing images: A survey and a new benchmark" (2,271).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Least Squares Generative Adversarial Networks Xudong Mao, Qing Li, Haoran Xie et al. Conference paper Oct 2017 5,285
2 Remote Sensing Image Scene Classification: Benchmark and State of the Art Gong Cheng, Junwei Han, Xiaoqiang Lu · Proceedings of the IEEE Open access 3 Apr 2017 2,701
3 Object detection in optical remote sensing images: A survey and a new benchmark Ke Li, Gang Wan, Gong Cheng et al. · ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing Open access 4 Dec 2019 2,271
4 All-inorganic perovskite nanocrystal scintillators Qiushui Chen et al. · Nature 24 Aug 2018 2,054
5 Perovskite light-emitting diodes based on spontaneously formed submicrometre-scale structures Yu Lian Cao et al. · Nature 2 Oct 2018 1,985
All 60 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Northwestern Polytechnical University?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Mechanical Properties, Deep Learning, Microstructure, Neural Networks, Heat Transfer, Large-Eddy Simulation, Machine Learning and Graphene.

▲ 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 Learning2,542▲ 2.8×85 topics
  2. Mechanical Properties1,703▲ 6.6×39 topics
  3. Machine Learning1,307▲ 1.48×89 topics
  4. Neural Networks1,226▲ 3.0×38 topics
  5. Microstructure1,128▲ 8.2×19 topics
  6. Heat Transfer769▲ 5.9×19 topics
  7. Graphene721▲ 4.0×12 topics
  8. Biomedical Applications650▲ 2.1×35 topics
  9. Convolutional Neural Networks633▲ 3.3×14 topics
  10. Nanocomposites588▲ 2.8×22 topics
  11. Energy Storage570▲ 3.3×12 topics
  12. Large-Eddy Simulation555▲ 11×5 topics
  13. Nonlinear Systems484▲ 8.4×8 topics
  14. Polymer Composites471▲ 6.7×7 topics
  15. Multi-Agent Systems463▲ 9.2×6 topics
  16. Additive Manufacturing453▲ 5.5×8 topics
  17. Microstructural Evolution452▲ 12×4 topics
  18. Vibration Analysis451▲ 6.3×8 topics
  19. Carbon Nanotubes450▲ 5.1×9 topics
  20. Wireless Sensor Networks445▲ 3.8×22 topics
  21. Composite Materials431▲ 7.8×11 topics
  22. Sintering420▲ 13×5 topics
  23. Sparse Representation410▲ 8.2×6 topics
  24. Adaptive Control403▲ 11×7 topics
  25. Oxidation Resistance392▲ 14×3 topics
  26. Numerical Simulation386▲ 5.0×14 topics
  27. Spark Plasma Sintering385▲ 15×2 topics
  28. Sensor Networks368▲ 5.8×5 topics
  29. Optimal Control353▲ 17×6 topics
  30. Neural Network334▲ 7.0×9 topics
  31. MXenes329▲ 13×2 topics
  32. Nonlinear Dynamics328▲ 5.6×9 topics
  33. Feedback Control321▲ 7.3×8 topics
  34. Collision Avoidance311▲ 6.5×4 topics
  35. Grain Refinement298▲ 9.8×4 topics
  36. Processing Techniques294▲ 13×2 topics
  37. Control293▲ 8.5×5 topics
  38. Phase Stability287▲ 16×2 topics
  39. Vortex Dynamics280▲ 9.3×4 topics
  40. Microstructure Evolution274▲ 14×5 topics

Which research topics does Northwestern Polytechnical University publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Adaptive Control of Nonlinear Systems, Advanced ceramic materials synthesis, Computational Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics and Advanced Antenna and Metasurface Technologies.

  1. 1 Adaptive Control of Nonlinear Systems Control and Systems Engineering 226 works
  2. 2 Advanced ceramic materials synthesis Ceramics and Composites 223 works
  3. 3 Computational Fluid Dynamics and Aerodynamics Computational Mechanics 204 works
  4. 4 Advanced Antenna and Metasurface Technologies Aerospace Engineering 200 works
  5. 5 Underwater Vehicles and Communication Systems Ocean Engineering 197 works
  6. 6 Guidance and Control Systems Aerospace Engineering 187 works
  7. 7 Distributed Control Multi-Agent Systems Computer Networks and Communications 185 works
  8. 8 Robotic Path Planning Algorithms Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition 185 works
  9. 9 Electromagnetic wave absorption materials Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials 182 works
  10. 10 Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows Computational Mechanics 182 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 available20.5%not open79.5%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors11.6%domestic only88.4%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Northwestern Polytechnical University's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 41% 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 Northwestern Polytechnical University as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.11% in 2024.

still counting0.050%0.10%0.15%Northwestern Polytechnical University0.11% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Northwestern Polytechnical 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%Northwestern Polytechnical University16.8% 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 17.6% in 2024.

Other research institutions in Xi'an

All research institutions in Xi'an

Which institutions have research most like Northwestern Polytechnical University's?

Among the world's leading institutions, Beijing Institute of Technology has the research profile closest to Northwestern Polytechnical University's, with both strong in Engineering.

  1. 1 Beijing Institute of TechnologyChina · Both strong in Engineering, Materials Science, Computer Science 0.98 Compare
  2. 2 Harbin Institute of TechnologyChina · Both strong in Engineering, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering 0.96 Compare
  3. 3 Dalian University of TechnologyChina · Both strong in Engineering, Materials Science, Chemical Engineering 0.95 Compare
  4. 4 Nanjing University of Science and TechnologyChina · Both strong in Engineering, Materials Science, Computer Science 0.95 Compare
  5. 5 Guangdong University of TechnologyChina · Both strong in Materials Science, Engineering, Computer Science 0.94 Compare

Similarity is the correlation of each side's location quotients across every field it publishes in, on a log scale: 1 is the same shape of research, 0 is unrelated. It ignores size. How it is measured.

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Northwestern Polytechnical University on Science Explorer

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

Overall

Domains

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Subfields

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners have tabs of their own, above.

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