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Company · San Jose · United States

Western Digital (United States)

In research, Western Digital (United States) stands highest in Physical Sciences (#6,322 of 12,888 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Electrical and Electronic Engineering — Electrical and Electronic Engineering is 6.8× its share of world research.

westerndigital.comROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#11,376
of 28,054 · #8,805 all time
Rank in United States
#1,550
of 4,192
Research works
752
▼ 18% vs 2013–17
Citations
9k
12.0 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
8.7%
record average 16.5%
Open access
17%
world 28%

What is Western Digital (United States) 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 #6,322 of 12,888 9.2%107 #5150

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where Western Digital (United States) 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).

What does Western Digital (United States) specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Electrical and Electronic Engineering takes 6.8× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Electrical and Electronic EngineeringSubfield · 28.4 works6.8×
← 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: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.47× its world share, 3 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Neuroscience: 0.45× its world share, 1 worksNeuroscienceChemical Engineering: 1.02× its world share, 0 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.69× its world share, 1 worksChemistryComputer Science: 1.88× its world share, 17 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.80× its world share, 2 worksEarth and Planetary …Engineering: 3.07× its world share, 54 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.39× its world share, 2 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 3.25× its world share, 13 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.12× its world share, 0 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 6.43× its world share, 17 worksPhysics and AstronomyHealth Professions: 0.09× its world share, 0 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.13× its world share, 3 worksMedicineArts and Humanities: 0.31× its world share, 1 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.08× its world share, 0 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 0.29× its world share, 0 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.05× its world share, 0 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.22× its world share, 1 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.05× its world share, 1 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Physics and Astronomy, 6.4×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at Western Digital (United States)?

Ranked on the composite score, Derek A. Stewart, Barry Stipe and Robert L. Smith lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Western Digital (United States).

  1. 1 Derek A. Stewart United States · #213,839 worldwide 285 citations · 34 works
  2. 2 Barry Stipe United States · #238,702 worldwide 309 citations · 19 works
  3. 3 Robert L. Smith United States · #288,362 worldwide 172 citations · 32 works
  4. 4 Andrey Ovcharenko United States · #789,720 worldwide 88 citations · 20 works
  5. 5 Tiffany Santos United States · #1,106,058 worldwide 44 citations · 23 works
  6. 6 Minghai Qin United States · #1,431,791 worldwide 24 citations · 27 works
  7. 7 Shao-Ping Li United States · #1,607,300 worldwide 14 citations · 17 works
All ranked researchers at Western Digital (United States)

Which keywords describe research at Western Digital (United States)?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Nanoparticles, Spintronics, Room Temperature, Magnetic Tunnel Junctions, Skyrmions, Neuromorphic Computing, Non-Volatile Memory and Nanoelectronics.

▲ 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. Nanoparticles13▲ 9.0×9 topics
  2. Spintronics12▲ 80×4 topics
  3. Room Temperature10▲ 53×2 topics
  4. Magnetic Tunnel Junctions10▲ 305×1 topic
  5. Skyrmions10▲ 305×1 topic
  6. Neuromorphic Computing8▲ 56×2 topics
  7. Neural Networks7▲ 3.9×8 topics
  8. Deep Learning7▲ 1.72×15 topics
  9. Non-Volatile Memory6▲ 57×2 topics
  10. Nanoelectronics6▲ 60×2 topics
  11. Atomic Layer Deposition5▲ 66×1 topic
  12. High-k Dielectrics5▲ 66×1 topic
  13. Memristor5▲ 50×1 topic
  14. Parallel Computing5▲ 35×2 topics
  15. Resistive Switching5▲ 50×1 topic
  16. Friction4▲ 66×2 topics
  17. Distributed Storage4▲ 127×1 topic
  18. Doping4▲ 39×2 topics
  19. Network Coding4▲ 74×1 topic
  20. Nanotubes4▲ 46×2 topics
  21. Adhesion4▲ 143×1 topic
  22. Gecko4▲ 143×1 topic
  23. Thin Films4▲ 17×5 topics
  24. Machine Vision3▲ 13×3 topics
  25. Nanostructures3▲ 7.2×6 topics
  26. Field-Effect Transistors3▲ 16×3 topics
  27. Nanowires3▲ 17×3 topics
  28. Biosensors3▲ 4.5×5 topics
  29. Electronic Structure3▲ 13×4 topics
  30. Ferroelectricity3▲ 25×1 topic
  31. Hafnium Oxide3▲ 74×1 topic
  32. Image Processing3▲ 5.0×4 topics
  33. Integrated Circuits2▲ 14×2 topics
  34. Thermal Management2▲ 6.2×5 topics
  35. Semiconductors2▲ 6.4×3 topics
  36. Metal-Insulator Transition2▲ 27×2 topics
  37. Silicon Photonics2▲ 18×2 topics
  38. Spectroscopy2▲ 10×3 topics
  39. Electromigration2▲ 58×2 topics
  40. Solar Cells2▲ 7.5×4 topics

Which research topics does Western Digital (United States) publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Magnetic properties of thin films, Semiconductor materials and devices, Advanced Memory and Neural Computing and Advanced Data Storage Technologies.

Magnetic properties of t…10Magnetic properties of thin films: 10 fractional worksSemiconductor materials and devices: 5 fractional worksAdvanced Memory and Neural Computing: 5 fractional worksAdvanced Data Storage Technologies: 4 fractional worksAdhesion, Friction, and Surface Interactions: 4 fractional worksFerroelectric and Negati…3Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices: 3 fractional worksIndustrial Vision Systems and Defect Detection: 2 fractional worksSurface Roughness and Optical Measurements: 2 fractional worksTopological Materials and Phenomena: 2 fractional worksPhase-change materials and chalcogenides: 2 fractional works
Atomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsElectrical and Electronic EngineeringComputer Networks and CommunicationsMechanics of Materials3 others

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

  1. 1 Magnetic properties of thin films Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 10 works
  2. 2 Semiconductor materials and devices Electrical and Electronic Engineering 5 works
  3. 3 Advanced Memory and Neural Computing Electrical and Electronic Engineering 5 works
  4. 4 Advanced Data Storage Technologies Computer Networks and Communications 4 works
  5. 5 Adhesion, Friction, and Surface Interactions Mechanics of Materials 4 works
  6. 6 Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices Electrical and Electronic Engineering 3 works
  7. 7 Industrial Vision Systems and Defect Detection Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering 2 works
  8. 8 Surface Roughness and Optical Measurements Computational Mechanics 2 works
  9. 9 Topological Materials and Phenomena Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 2 works
  10. 10 Phase-change materials and chalcogenides Materials Chemistry 2 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 available16.6%not open83.4%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors25.4%domestic only74.6%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has Western Digital (United States)'s research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 18% 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 San Jose

All research institutions in San Jose

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.