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Research facility · Albuquerque · United States

Sandia National Laboratories

In research, Sandia National Laboratories stands highest in Physical Sciences (#822 of 12,888 worldwide), Engineering (#776 of 6,636 worldwide) and Computer Science (#1,037 of 4,667 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Hardware and Architecture, Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty and Radiation — Hardware and Architecture is 10.2× its share of world research.

sandia.govROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#1,433
of 28,054 · #267 all time
Rank in United States
#231
of 4,192
Research works
27k
▲ 17% vs 2013–17
Citations
630k
23.7 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
7.3%
record average 16.5%
Open access
38%
world 28%

What is Sandia National Laboratories known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #822 of 12,888 7.4%4,166 #173
EngineeringField #776 of 6,636 6.7%2,087 #144
Computer ScienceField #1,037 of 4,667 6.0%576 #235
Physics and AstronomyField #369 of 1,646 12.8%399 #120
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringSubfield #616 of 2,318 5.3%618 #116
Materials ScienceField #693 of 2,468 6.1%460 #134
Materials ChemistrySubfield #705 of 1,556 6.2%316 #145
Computational MechanicsSubfield #185 of 376 10.2%166 #73
Atomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsSubfield #283 of 565 12.8%163 #87
Mechanical EngineeringSubfield #700 of 1,351 5.8%227 #281

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where Sandia National Laboratories 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 world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Physical Sciences#173 #822
  2. Engineering#144 #776
  3. Computer Science#235 #1,037
  4. Physics and Astronomy#120 #369
  5. Electrical and Electronic Engineering#116 #616
  6. Materials Science#134 #693
  7. Materials Chemistry#145 #705
  8. Computational Mechanics#73 #185
  9. Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics#87 #283
  10. Mechanical Engineering#281 #700
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

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

What does Sandia National Laboratories specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Hardware and Architecture takes 10.2× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Hardware and ArchitectureSubfield · 52.4 works10×
  2. Statistics, Probability and UncertaintySubfield · 61.0 works7.9×
  3. RadiationSubfield · 40.8 works6.5×
  4. Computational MechanicsSubfield · 165.8 works6.3×
← 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: 0.07× its world share, 15 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.15× its world share, 37 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.03× its world share, 1 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.26× its world share, 19 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.24× its world share, 4 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 2.98× its world share, 48 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 1.51× its world share, 108 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.63× its world share, 576 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 2.58× its world share, 184 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 2.06× its world share, 86 worksEnergyEngineering: 3.05× its world share, 2,086 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.66× its world share, 150 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 2.89× its world share, 460 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 1.29× its world share, 69 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 3.94× its world share, 399 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.03× its world share, 1 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.12× its world share, 15 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.06× its world share, 56 worksMedicineNursing: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.09× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.09× its world share, 11 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.14× its world share, 21 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 2.95× its world share, 130 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.16× its world share, 16 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.10× its world share, 14 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.09× its world share, 50 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Physics and Astronomy, 3.9×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at Sandia National Laboratories?

Ranked on the composite score, Steven J. Plimpton, Mark J. Stevens and C. Jeffrey Brinker lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Sandia National Laboratories.

  1. 1 Steven J. Plimpton United States · #4,734 worldwide 10k citations · 58 works
  2. 2 Mark J. Stevens United States · #6,838 worldwide 2k citations · 59 works
  3. 3 C. Jeffrey Brinker United States · #8,061 worldwide 1.1k citations · 77 works
  4. 4 Aidan P. Thompson United States · #9,222 worldwide 2.2k citations · 50 works
  5. 5 P.E. Dodd United States · #18,685 worldwide 628 citations · 52 works
  6. 6 M.R. Shaneyfelt United States · #19,549 worldwide 659 citations · 65 works
  7. 7 Paul Crozier United States · #21,954 worldwide 1.8k citations · 37 works
  8. 8 J.R. Schwank United States · #25,571 worldwide 628 citations · 50 works
  9. 9 Jay Johnson United States · #25,965 worldwide 555 citations · 45 works
  10. 10 Stewart Silling United States · #25,974 worldwide 702 citations · 54 works
All ranked researchers at Sandia National Laboratories

Which keywords describe research at Sandia National Laboratories?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Machine Learning, Renewable Energy, Mechanical Properties, Tomography, Deep Learning, Thermal Management, Neural Networks and High-Performance Computing.

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

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 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. Machine Learning306▲ 2.0×70 topics
  2. Deep Learning200▲ 1.29×63 topics
  3. Renewable Energy199▲ 3.0×40 topics
  4. Neural Networks133▲ 1.89×31 topics
  5. Mechanical Properties128▲ 2.9×34 topics
  6. Nanoparticles104▲ 1.81×36 topics
  7. Thermal Management86▲ 5.7×8 topics
  8. Artificial Neural Networks81▲ 3.8×8 topics
  9. Heat Transfer80▲ 3.5×16 topics
  10. Energy Storage79▲ 2.6×12 topics
  11. Smart Grid78▲ 4.5×9 topics
  12. Tomography78▲ 9.4×5 topics
  13. Lithium-ion Batteries77▲ 4.0×4 topics
  14. Catalysis74▲ 2.5×24 topics
  15. Power Electronics72▲ 4.8×8 topics
  16. Microstructure68▲ 2.9×16 topics
  17. Cathode Materials64▲ 3.6×3 topics
  18. Additive Manufacturing64▲ 4.5×8 topics
  19. High-Performance Computing60▲ 16×3 topics
  20. Large-Eddy Simulation60▲ 6.8×5 topics
  21. Parallel Computing58▲ 11×4 topics
  22. Nanoelectronics58▲ 15×2 topics
  23. Solar Energy57▲ 4.0×5 topics
  24. Workflow Management55▲ 17×2 topics
  25. Finite Element Analysis53▲ 5.1×9 topics
  26. Thin Films53▲ 6.0×9 topics
  27. Raman Spectroscopy51▲ 5.7×7 topics
  28. Distributed Systems51▲ 6.7×6 topics
  29. Integrated Circuits50▲ 7.1×3 topics
  30. Superconductivity50▲ 6.4×9 topics
  31. Molecular Dynamics49▲ 6.5×7 topics
  32. Inverse Problems48▲ 9.8×4 topics
  33. Microstructural Evolution47▲ 6.9×4 topics
  34. Nanowires45▲ 6.9×5 topics
  35. Semiconductor Devices43▲ 13×2 topics
  36. Atomic Layer Deposition42▲ 13×1 topic
  37. High-k Dielectrics42▲ 13×1 topic
  38. Modeling and Simulation42▲ 14×2 topics
  39. Thermal Properties42▲ 7.4×7 topics
  40. Oxidation Resistance42▲ 8.5×3 topics

Which research topics does Sandia National Laboratories publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Semiconductor materials and devices, Advanced Battery Technologies Research, Neural Networks and Applications and Machine Learning in Materials Science.

Semiconductor materials …42Semiconductor materials and devices: 42 fractional worksAdvanced Battery Technol…37Advanced Battery Technologies Research: 37 fractional worksNeural Networks and Applications: 37 fractional worksMachine Learning in Materials Science: 35 fractional worksLaser-Plasma Interactions and Diagnostics: 34 fractional worksParallel Computing and Optimization Techniques: 31 fractional worksNuclear and radioactivity studies: 30 fractional worksManufacturing Process an…30Manufacturing Process and Optimization: 30 fractional worksProbabilistic and Robust Engineering Design: 30 fractional worksMicrogrid Control and Optimization: 29 fractional works
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringAutomotive EngineeringArtificial IntelligenceMaterials Chemistry6 others

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

  1. 1 Semiconductor materials and devices Electrical and Electronic Engineering 42 works
  2. 2 Advanced Battery Technologies Research Automotive Engineering 37 works
  3. 3 Neural Networks and Applications Artificial Intelligence 37 works
  4. 4 Machine Learning in Materials Science Materials Chemistry 35 works
  5. 5 Laser-Plasma Interactions and Diagnostics Nuclear and High Energy Physics 34 works
  6. 6 Parallel Computing and Optimization Techniques Hardware and Architecture 31 works
  7. 7 Nuclear and radioactivity studies Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality 30 works
  8. 8 Manufacturing Process and Optimization Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering 30 works
  9. 9 Probabilistic and Robust Engineering Design Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty 30 works
  10. 10 Microgrid Control and Optimization Control and Systems Engineering 29 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 available38.0%not open62.0%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors6.4%domestic only93.6%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has Sandia National Laboratories's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 17% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

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

Other research institutions in Albuquerque

All research institutions in Albuquerque

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.