Inside the frontier areas of research in physics: A micro level analysis

In an earlier study,(1) a methodology was described for identifying Frontier Areas in a research field, i.e., areas which experienced in a particular time period significant increase in research output in comparison to a preceding time period. The application of this methodology was shown by identifying Frontier Areas of research in Physics in 1995. Comparison was done with respect to the outputs in different areas in 1990, Profiles of countries active in the identified Frontier Areas were then constructed. In this paper, attempt is made to reveal the active research topics/themes within these Frontier Areas in 1990 and 1995. The active research topics, which are uncovered, are classified as Frontier Topics. Countries active in these frontier topics are distinguished in each time period. Association among countries and Frontier Topics are observed using the multivariate technique of correspondence analysis. Dynamics are observed by analysing the changes in the profiles of the countries in the two time periods. Results and implications of this study for decision-making and as a policy tool are highlighted.