Having your research cited in work by others is one of the highest forms of recognition faculty can gain, and a validation that their efforts are seen as valuable by others.

Clarivate annually compiles a list of highly cited researchers, using data from the previous decade to come up with those who are in the top one percent in their field around the world, in terms of citations.

Their list for 2021 features three current faculty members of the Tickle College of Engineering and one who retired in October, but was active during the time the data was gathered.

“Being a highly-cited researcher is an important acknowledgement for our individual faculty members, but it also helps elevate the college as a whole, and even the university,” said Dean Matthew Mench, the Wayne T. Davis Dean’s Chair of the college. “I am happy for them, and congratulate them in this well-deserved honor.”

Honorees this year and their general research areas include:

• UT-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chair for Biorefining Art Ragauskas, whose main focus is on the conversion of biomass into fuels;
• UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair for Advanced Alloy Theory and Development Easo George, who studied the behavior and testing of alloys and metals before his recent retirement from UT;
• Jerry and Kay Henry Endowed Professor David Mandrus, whose research involves studying the growth, discovery, and materials physics of new electronic and magnetic materials;
• Joint Faculty Associate Professor Jiaqiang Yan, who explores how to design new materials with desired functionalities related to electrical, magnetic, and thermal properties.

While all have association with ORNL, at UT Ragauskas works out of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and George, Mandrus, and Yan all worked in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

Clarivate has a searchable database of 2021 selections for those interested in exploring the full list, as well as a detailed explanation of their methodology.