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University · Southampton · United Kingdom

University of Southampton

In research, University of Southampton stands highest in Social Sciences (#140 of 10,521 worldwide), Physical Sciences (#315 of 12,888 worldwide) and Social Sciences (#159 of 6,365 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Nuclear and High Energy Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics and Music — Nuclear and High Energy Physics is 3.8× its share of world research.

southampton.ac.ukROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#279
of 28,054 · #111 all time
Rank in United Kingdom
#19
of 1,094
Research works
85k
▼ 11% vs 2013–17
Citations
2.4M
28.5 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
21.8%
record average 16.5%
Open access
34%
world 28%

What is University of Southampton 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
Social SciencesDomain #140 of 10,521 27.2%2,808 #94
Physical SciencesDomain #315 of 12,888 18.9%4,609 #92
Social SciencesField #159 of 6,365 28.3%1,241 #78
Health SciencesDomain #361 of 11,982 20.9%1,549 #133
EngineeringField #231 of 6,636 15.9%2,114 #49
Business, Management and AccountingField #109 of 2,578 34.4%332 #85
MedicineField #485 of 10,443 20.1%1,216 #203
Sociology and Political ScienceSubfield #123 of 2,578 27.0%450 #84
Life SciencesDomain #505 of 7,800 21.4%667 #260
PsychologyField #169 of 2,181 25.7%443 —

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where University of Southampton 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. Social Sciences#94 #140
  2. Physical Sciences#92 #315
  3. Social Sciences#78 #159
  4. Health Sciences#133 #361
  5. Engineering#49 #231
  6. Business, Management and Accounting#85 #109
  7. Medicine#203 #485
  8. Sociology and Political Science#84 #123
  9. Life Sciences#260 #505
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 University of Southampton specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Nuclear and High Energy Physics takes 3.8× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Nuclear and High Energy PhysicsSubfield · 113.6 works3.8×
  2. Astronomy and AstrophysicsSubfield · 159.4 works3.2×
  3. MusicSubfield · 23.1 works2.9×
  4. OceanographySubfield · 77.2 works2.9×
← 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: 0.25× its world share, 116 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.57× its world share, 295 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.75× its world share, 73 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 1.10× its world share, 172 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 0.33× its world share, 11 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 0.57× its world share, 19 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.77× its world share, 117 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.93× its world share, 695 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 1.70× its world share, 257 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.56× its world share, 50 worksEnergyEngineering: 1.46× its world share, 2,114 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.91× its world share, 433 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.77× its world share, 259 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 1.11× its world share, 126 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 2.52× its world share, 540 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.16× its world share, 8 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 1.12× its world share, 285 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.66× its world share, 1,216 worksMedicineNursing: 0.69× its world share, 33 worksNursingVeterinary: 0.65× its world share, 8 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 1.32× its world share, 367 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 1.07× its world share, 332 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 1.60× its world share, 149 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1.34× its world share, 276 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.51× its world share, 443 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 1.02× its world share, 1,240 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Physics and Astronomy, 2.5×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at University of Southampton?

Ranked on the composite score, Cyrus Cooper, Avan Aihie Sayer and Gerry Stoker lead among researchers whose main affiliation is University of Southampton.

  1. 1 Cyrus Cooper · #144 worldwide 7.2k citations · 486 works
  2. 2 Avan Aihie Sayer · #1,388 worldwide 2.6k citations · 85 works
  3. 3 Gerry Stoker · #1,855 worldwide 1k citations · 108 works
  4. 4 Graham Roberts · #4,115 worldwide 810 citations · 102 works
  5. 5 M. Fleischmann · #5,211 worldwide 1.8k citations · 93 works
  6. 6 Nicholas C.P. Cross · #5,233 worldwide 768 citations · 81 works
  7. 7 Philip C. Calder · #5,451 worldwide 1.7k citations · 145 works
  8. 8 Lucy Yardley · #5,484 worldwide 1.4k citations · 127 works
  9. 9 Ratko Djukanović · #6,970 worldwide 712 citations · 85 works
  10. 10 Luc Moreau · #7,270 worldwide 1.1k citations · 106 works
All ranked researchers at University of Southampton

Which keywords describe research at University of Southampton?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Nonlinear Optics, Fiber Lasers, Climate Change, Optical Fiber, Vibration Control, Machine Learning, Raman Lasers and Optical Modulators.

▲ 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. Epidemiology307▼ 0.81×127 topics
  2. Climate Change306▲ 1.18×96 topics
  3. Machine Learning294◆ 0.93×86 topics
  4. Deep Learning288◆ 0.87×82 topics
  5. Globalization216◆ 1.14×91 topics
  6. Mental Health165▲ 1.17×44 topics
  7. Nonlinear Optics128▲ 12×4 topics
  8. Biosensors122▲ 2.5×12 topics
  9. Fiber Lasers117▲ 13×3 topics
  10. Optical Fiber104▲ 10×3 topics
  11. Ethics104▲ 2.2×34 topics
  12. Large-Eddy Simulation99▲ 5.4×5 topics
  13. Vibration Control92▲ 16×4 topics
  14. Optical Modulators92▲ 6.5×3 topics
  15. Raman Lasers87▲ 7.9×2 topics
  16. Turbulent Flow83▲ 7.2×4 topics
  17. Integrated Circuits82▲ 5.4×3 topics
  18. Silicon Photonics77▲ 7.4×2 topics
  19. Microcavities76▲ 7.1×2 topics
  20. Nanophotonic Waveguides76▲ 8.0×1 topic
  21. Whispering Gallery Mode76▲ 8.0×1 topic
  22. Microwave Photonics73▲ 8.5×2 topics
  23. Gas Sensing67▲ 16×2 topics
  24. Wave Propagation65▲ 6.1×4 topics
  25. Microresonators62▲ 8.0×3 topics
  26. Flow Control59▲ 11×2 topics
  27. Black Holes58▲ 6.4×3 topics
  28. Subwavelength Imaging58▲ 14×2 topics
  29. High-Power Laser57▲ 33×1 topic
  30. Supercontinuum Generation57▲ 33×1 topic
  31. Band Gaps56▲ 12×2 topics
  32. Elastic Waves56▲ 13×2 topics
  33. Acoustic Metamaterials55▲ 16×1 topic
  34. Phononic Crystals55▲ 16×1 topic
  35. Structural Health Monitoring55▲ 7.3×4 topics
  36. Optical Frequency Combs54▲ 10×1 topic
  37. Ultrafast Lasers54▲ 10×1 topic
  38. Fiber Optic Sensors52▲ 10×1 topic
  39. Sensor Technology52▲ 10×1 topic
  40. High-Speed Trains52▲ 8.2×3 topics

Which research topics does University of Southampton publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Photonic and Optical Devices, Photonic Crystal and Fiber Optics, Acoustic Wave Phenomena Research and Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies.

Photonic and Optical Dev…76Photonic and Optical Devices: 76 fractional worksPhotonic Crystal and Fib…57Photonic Crystal and Fiber Optics: 57 fractional worksAcoustic Wave Phenomena …55Acoustic Wave Phenomena Research: 55 fractional worksAdvanced Fiber Laser Tec…54Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies: 54 fractional worksAdvanced Fiber Optic Sensors: 52 fractional worksOptical Network Technologies: 49 fractional worksAerodynamics and Acousti…38Aerodynamics and Acoustics in Jet Flows: 38 fractional worksCosmology and Gravitation Theories: 31 fractional worksBlack Holes and Theoretical Physics: 29 fractional worksFluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows: 29 fractional works
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringBiomedical EngineeringAtomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsAerospace Engineering3 others

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

  1. 1 Photonic and Optical DevicesElectrical and Electronic Engineering 76 works
  2. 2 Photonic Crystal and Fiber OpticsElectrical and Electronic Engineering 57 works
  3. 3 Acoustic Wave Phenomena ResearchBiomedical Engineering 55 works
  4. 4 Advanced Fiber Laser TechnologiesAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 54 works
  5. 5 Advanced Fiber Optic SensorsElectrical and Electronic Engineering 52 works
  6. 6 Optical Network TechnologiesElectrical and Electronic Engineering 49 works
  7. 7 Aerodynamics and Acoustics in Jet FlowsAerospace Engineering 38 works
  8. 8 Cosmology and Gravitation TheoriesAstronomy and Astrophysics 31 works
  9. 9 Black Holes and Theoretical PhysicsNuclear and High Energy Physics 29 works
  10. 10 Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent FlowsComputational Mechanics 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 available34.5%not open65.5%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors23.0%domestic only77.0%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has University of Southampton's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 11% lower 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 Southampton

All research institutions in Southampton

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.