MSE 601: Graduate Student Resources
Material Science Article Indexes and Databases
Material Science and Engineering Article Databases - Best Bets
New developments and current research often appear first as conference papers and/or journals articles. You can find these in Article Indexes and Databases. You will also find product reviews, descriptions of methodology, or information on innovations in or applications of particular processes, systems and devices.
Each database has a different scope - it will cover different subjects and therefore will contain descriptions to articles in different journals.
- Engineering Village (Compendex and INSPEC)Articles, conference papers, and technical reports for all engineering disciplines; good source for current and past research.
Compendex, and INSPEC are searched jointly on the Engineering Village Platform. To search only one of the databases: when on the main search screen, the databases are listed under the search box. Click the box to the left any database you do not wish to search.
INSPEC: Covers electrical engineering, physics, computers and control, manufacturing; Includes articles, conference papers and some books, dissertations and reports. - SciFinder (American Chemical Society)The premier chemistry database, this index is especially useful if you are searching for specific substances. To access: Click on SciFinder Scholar, then enter your BSU username and password. First time users will need to register; once registered use the click "here" link to get to the login screen. The information screen also has links to SciFinder Mobile.
To limit to Reviews: On the Explore References search page, click the box to the left of "Review" in the Document Type(s) category (below the blue area that contains search text box). - SPIE Digital Library (International Society for Optics and Photonics)Covers topics in optics and photonics science and engineering, including imaging, sensors, biomedicine, manufacturing, and energy to nanotechnology, communications, entertainment, and electronics.
- American Energy Society Digtial LibraryFirst Time users must create an account using your Boise State email address. Then Login click on "members" in the upper right corner. Under "Publications" find: articles, podcasts, energy sector analysis reports; Under "Services" find: ecosystem maps, datasets
General Science Databases
If you're not finding what you need in discipline related or specialized database, try one of these multidisciplinary science databases:
- Web of Science (WOS)Multi-disciplinary index includes article information in sciences, engineering, social sciences, arts and humanities. A key feature of this index is the cited reference search, which searches for the articles that have cited a particular author’s work, or a specific article.
- Science DirectMulti-disciplinary, the primary focus is science, engineering and medicine. Table of contents information is available for publication years before 1997.
- Scopus (Elsevier)A large, multidisciplinary database of peer-reviewed literature: scientific journals, books, and conference proceedings.
- Science.govProvides access to a large range of science-related web pages and databases from United States government agencies (the full list is at: http://www.science.gov/searchdbs.html).
Find Other Databases to Search
From the Library's Main page (boisestate.edu/library):
Step 1 - Click the Indexes and Databases Panel
Step 2 - Scroll down to the Databases A to Z List
Step 3 - Search a broad subject (e.g. Chemistry) or part of a database name
Step 4 - Database options will appear below the search box
Who Cited this Article?
Many databases will show you who cited a particular article. Depending on the database you search, these citations might be from articles, technical reports, dissertations, or other types of documents. Here are some options in broad general databases that might help.
- Web of Science (WOS)Multi-disciplinary database; key feature is the "cited reference" search, which searches for the articles that have cited a particular author’s work, or a specific article
- Google ScholarGoogle Scholar: is a great place to search an article and see who cited it. Look for the "cited by" link
Why are the Number of Citations Different?
You may find that the numbers of articles that cited an original article are different in each database you search. Databases that have a "cited by" feature are retrieving the information from the content within their own database or a range of databases by that vendor, so their sources of information will differ.
Google Scholar will usually have more articles listed under their "cited by" because the database searches across the Internet
Using Google's Advanced Search
Google Scholar Advanced Search can help you structure your search around the keywords you generated for your topic, and give you ideas of how to focus your search. To get to the Advanced Search feature:
1. Go to Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com) and click the menu bars on the top left
2. Choose Advanced Search
The structure of Google Scholar's Advanced Search template allows you to easily structure your search around your keywords, return articles authored by a particular person, published in a specific journal, or published between specified dates.
