Impact and structure of literature on nanoparticle generation by laser ablation in liquids

The number of publications on laser ablation and nanoparticle generation in liquids increased by the factor of 15 in the last decade, with comparable high impact of the most cited articles in this field. A nearly unlimited variety of nanoparticle material, liquid matrix, and conjugative agent can be combined to a huge variety of colloids within a few minutes of laser processing. However, this diversification makes it hard to identify main research directions without a comprehensive literature overview. This investigation evaluates the impact and structure of the literature in this field tagging most prolific subjects and articles. Using an optimized search algorithm, the data sets derived from Science Citation Index (1998-2008) allow for statements on publication subject clusters, impact of articles and journals, as well as mapping global spots of activities.