INSTRUMENTATION, INTERDISCIPLINARY KNOWLEDGE, AND RESEARCH PERFORMANCE IN SPIN-GLASS AND SUPERFLUID HE-3

Interviews with researchers in two fields of condensed matter physics point to differences in their strategies for success. In one, synthesizing interdisciplinary knowledge takes priority over developing sophisticated instrumentation; in the other, developing instruments is crucial. As a result, the fields differ in other ways, such as growth rates, presence of dilettantes, and freedom available to plan experiments. The differing priority given to instrumentation in each field suggests that blanket generalizations about advances in instrumentation being crucial to advances in science are too simple.