Mapping the Brazilian microscopy landscape: A bibliometric and network analysis

Abstract

Understanding how a technology is introduced and shared in a society has a strategic value for the planning of technological development and assessing new market opportunities. Among other technologies, microscopy has had a significant role in advancing different fields of science. In Brazil, its use spans from biomedical to engineering areas. Here, we used social network analysis (SNA) to map and quantify the flow of interaction between Brazilian researchers involved in microscopy techniques. The analysis examines co-occurrence of thematic networks and scientific co-authorship in articles published in a ten years window, as retrieved from Scopus database. The results showed an increasing volume of publications using microscopy in Brazil. The two major areas of interest are material and life sciences, which present significant intra-regional interaction. USA, Spain, Germany, Portugal and the United Kingdom are the main partner countries for international scientific collaborations. The share of Brazilian publications applying microscopy follows the global trends, with a slight predominance in health and life sciences. Our results provide a context of the strengths and gaps of the field in Brazil and may help to inform researchers and policy makers for further advancing the field.

Keywords: Brazilian microscopy landscape; Microscopy survey Brazil; Network analysis.