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University · Guangzhou · China

South China Normal University

In research, South China Normal University stands highest in Physical Sciences (#130 of 12,888 worldwide), Engineering (#168 of 6,636 worldwide) and Electrical and Electronic Engineering (#85 of 2,318 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, Condensed Matter Physics and Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials — Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics is 6.0× its share of world research.

scnu.edu.cnROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#189
of 28,054 · #738 all time
Rank in China
#72
of 3,058
Research works
28k
▲ 43% vs 2013–17
Citations
376k
13.7 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
23.5%
record average 16.5%
Open access
26%
world 28%

What is South China Normal University 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 #130 of 12,888 20.4%4,726 #657
EngineeringField #168 of 6,636 19.8%1,370 #654
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringSubfield #85 of 2,318 22.5%690 #351
Social SciencesDomain #418 of 10,521 32.8%1,318 #902
Physics and AstronomyField #109 of 1,646 24.5%572 #590
Materials ScienceField #175 of 2,468 21.7%586 #587
Materials ChemistrySubfield #112 of 1,556 23.4%365 #464
Social SciencesField #482 of 6,365 35.2%484 #893
Environmental ScienceField #279 of 3,551 24.3%438 #816
Life SciencesDomain #618 of 7,800 25.2%811 #1364

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where South China Normal 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 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#657 #130
  2. Engineering#654 #168
  3. Electrical and Electronic Engineering#351 #85
  4. Social Sciences#902 #418
  5. Physics and Astronomy#590 #109
  6. Materials Science#587 #175
  7. Materials Chemistry#464 #112
  8. Social Sciences#893 #482
  9. Environmental Science#816 #279
  10. Life Sciences#1,364 #618
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 South China Normal University specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics takes 6.0× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Atomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsSubfield · 311.4 works6.0×
  2. Condensed Matter PhysicsSubfield · 50.0 works4.3×
  3. Electronic, Optical and Magnetic MaterialsSubfield · 141.6 works4.3×
  4. Cognitive NeuroscienceSubfield · 215.6 works4.1×
  5. Experimental and Cognitive PsychologySubfield · 133.9 works3.9×
← 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: 0.45× its world share, 155 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.83× its world share, 320 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.51× its world share, 38 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 2.48× its world share, 292 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.25× its world share, 6 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 1.38× its world share, 35 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 1.61× its world share, 183 worksChemistryComputer Science: 2.04× its world share, 1,148 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.60× its world share, 68 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 2.01× its world share, 134 worksEnergyEngineering: 1.26× its world share, 1,370 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 1.22× its world share, 438 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 2.32× its world share, 586 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 2.26× its world share, 192 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 3.56× its world share, 572 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.07× its world share, 2 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 0.21× its world share, 40 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.24× its world share, 329 worksMedicineNursing: 0.25× its world share, 9 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.08× its world share, 1 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 0.39× its world share, 81 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.50× its world share, 116 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.05× its world share, 74 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.68× its world share, 106 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 2.08× its world share, 458 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.53× its world share, 484 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.

Who are the top researchers at South China Normal University?

Ranked on the composite score, Zhi‐Chao Luo, Wen‐Cheng Xu and Ai‐Ping Luo lead among researchers whose main affiliation is South China Normal University.

  1. 1 Zhi‐Chao Luo · #43,352 worldwide 372 citations · 52 works
  2. 2 Wen‐Cheng Xu · #46,869 worldwide 356 citations · 41 works
  3. 3 Ai‐Ping Luo · #48,604 worldwide 376 citations · 52 works
  4. 4 Xiaoyan Tang · #98,540 worldwide 339 citations · 29 works
  5. 5 Jun Fan · #112,941 worldwide 506 citations · 51 works
  6. 6 Laisheng Li · #143,085 worldwide 330 citations · 32 works
  7. 7 Mengqing Xu · #151,910 worldwide 303 citations · 32 works
  8. 8 Xianglong Hu · #161,746 worldwide 268 citations · 29 works
  9. 9 Min-Rong Chen · #169,892 worldwide 195 citations · 29 works
  10. 10 Zong-Xuan Chen · #177,416 worldwide 78 citations · 31 works
All ranked researchers at South China Normal University

Which keywords describe research at South China Normal University?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Deep Learning, Cathode Materials, Neural Networks, Energy Storage, Lithium-ion Batteries, Rechargeable Batteries, Graphene and Nanomaterials.

▲ 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. Deep Learning547▲ 2.2×83 topics
  2. Machine Learning313▲ 1.32×86 topics
  3. Neural Networks289▲ 2.6×37 topics
  4. Cathode Materials239▲ 8.4×3 topics
  5. Nanomaterials213▲ 2.8×18 topics
  6. Energy Storage204▲ 4.3×12 topics
  7. Graphene190▲ 3.8×10 topics
  8. Biomedical Applications179▲ 2.1×35 topics
  9. Lithium-ion Batteries171▲ 5.6×4 topics
  10. Biosensors165▲ 4.4×12 topics
  11. Rechargeable Batteries147▲ 7.5×2 topics
  12. Catalysis141▲ 2.9×27 topics
  13. Semiconductor130▲ 5.3×7 topics
  14. Metal-Organic Frameworks124▲ 4.1×6 topics
  15. Battery Technology112▲ 5.4×3 topics
  16. Battery Materials110▲ 9.1×1 topic
  17. Nanostructured Anodes110▲ 9.1×1 topic
  18. Water Splitting107▲ 4.0×4 topics
  19. Semiconductors105▲ 4.8×5 topics
  20. Emotion Regulation96▲ 4.3×9 topics
  21. Ionic Conductivity94▲ 9.5×2 topics
  22. Lithium-Sulfur Batteries93▲ 8.9×2 topics
  23. Nanostructured Cathodes92▲ 10×1 topic
  24. Solid-State Electrolytes92▲ 10×1 topic
  25. Nonlinear Optics92▲ 11×4 topics
  26. Chemical Sensors89▲ 5.2×3 topics
  27. CO2 Reduction88▲ 5.6×2 topics
  28. Visible Light84▲ 5.0×3 topics
  29. Bioimaging84▲ 5.1×6 topics
  30. Two-Dimensional Materials81▲ 4.8×4 topics
  31. Information Retrieval80▲ 5.1×6 topics
  32. Photocatalyst77▲ 6.0×1 topic
  33. Plasmonic77▲ 6.0×1 topic
  34. Text Classification76▲ 6.6×3 topics
  35. Methane Storage75▲ 8.1×2 topics
  36. Optical Modulators74▲ 6.9×3 topics
  37. Photonic Crystals71▲ 8.0×5 topics
  38. Metamaterials70▲ 6.9×5 topics
  39. Nanophotonics70▲ 10×3 topics
  40. Fiber Lasers69▲ 9.8×3 topics

Which research topics does South China Normal University publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Advancements in Battery Materials, Advanced Battery Materials and Technologies, Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques and Topic Modeling.

Advancements in Battery Materials: 110 fractional worksAdvanced Battery Materials and Technologies: 92 fractional worksAdvanced Photocatalysis …77Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques: 77 fractional worksTopic Modeling56Topic Modeling: 56 fractional worksPerovskite Materials and Applications: 48 fractional worksAdvanced Battery Technologies Research: 46 fractional worksAdvanced Fiber Laser Tec…43Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies: 43 fractional worksOnline Learning and Analytics: 41 fractional worksOrbital Angular Momentum in Optics: 40 fractional worksAdvanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniques: 38 fractional works
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the EnvironmentArtificial IntelligenceAutomotive Engineering3 others

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

  1. 1 Advancements in Battery MaterialsElectrical and Electronic Engineering 110 works
  2. 2 Advanced Battery Materials and TechnologiesElectrical and Electronic Engineering 92 works
  3. 3 Advanced Photocatalysis TechniquesRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment 77 works
  4. 4 Topic ModelingArtificial Intelligence 56 works
  5. 5 Perovskite Materials and ApplicationsElectrical and Electronic Engineering 48 works
  6. 6 Advanced Battery Technologies ResearchAutomotive Engineering 46 works
  7. 7 Advanced Fiber Laser TechnologiesAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 43 works
  8. 8 Online Learning and AnalyticsComputer Science Applications 41 works
  9. 9 Orbital Angular Momentum in OpticsAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 40 works
  10. 10 Advanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniquesMolecular Biology 38 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 available25.6%not open74.4%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors12.5%domestic only87.5%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has South China Normal University's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 43% 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 Guangzhou

All research institutions in Guangzhou

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.