Academic publishing remains the gold standard by which research success is measured. A total of nine researchers from Ulm University were listed among the Highly Cited Researchers 2018 (Clarivate Analytics), a stellar achievement for Baden-Württemberg's youngest university.
Seven men and two women from Ulm University were named among the top 1 per cent of the world's most frequently cited researchers. The influential researchers included: Professor Peter Bäuerle (chemistry), Professor Heiko Braak and Dr Dr Kelly Del Tredici (both neuroscience), Professor Hartmut Döhner and Professor Stephan Stilgenbauer (both leukaemia research), Professor Steven Jansen (botany), Professor Fedor Jelezko and Professor Martin Plenio (both quantum physics) and Professor Ute Kaiser (physics).
University President Professor Michael Weber is elated: "Never before have so many scientists from Ulm University been named among the most successful publishing researchers in the world!" And the University's success is not only due to the fact that this year, for the first time, the publication ranking expanded to include scientists who conduct interdisciplinary research. "This is further proof that the University made excellent choices in terms of its research focuses, and that the research focuses draw a good amount of attention at an international level. After all, the most frequently cited researchers at Ulm University are all conducting research on topics within our strategic development areas", Weber continues. The areas of research referred to by Prof Weber include energy storage and conversion, haematology and oncology, neurodegeneration, quantum technologies and adaptation of biological and technical systems.
For the 2018 analysis, citation data was collected over a period of an entire decade - from 2006 to 2016. The more frequently an author or his paper was cited, the higher his citation index. Each year, the top 1 per cent of the most frequently cited authors in a specific field of research is included in the list of Highly Cited Researchers (HCR). The publishers of the Highly Cited Researchers study, scientific agency Clarivate Analytics, based their work on a database analysis of the independent citation index Web of Science, the largest of its kind. In a global comparison, Germany came in at 4th place with 356 HCR, following the USA (2639), the UK (546) and China (482) at places 1, 2 and 3, respectively.