Research Experience for Undergraduates

• Research databases
• Free online resources
• Print reference sources
• Citation resources
• Data management basics

Research Databases

A good place to start is the list of research databases by subject, especially:
Chemistry, Computer Science , and Physics.

ArXiv

• The physics and math e-print archive. See particularly Condensed Matter and Quantum Physics.

Chemspider

• ChemSpider is a chemistry search engine. It has been built with the intention of aggregating and indexing chemical structures and their associated information into a single searchable repository and make it available to everybody, at no charge.

Google Scholar

• Google for academics. Because it can search inside pdfs, it may turn up hard-to-find information not found elsewhere. Use this link to have access to the FindText full text information.

IEEE Xplore

• Covers IEEE (Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers) journals, magazines, and conference proceedings, 1988 to present. Includes full-text access to journals (but not proceedings) from 1998-present. Good for nanotechnology, optics, semiconductors, information science, etc.

SciFinder Scholar

• "The" search engine and databases for chemistry. Registration is required for web access. Only 3 UO users can use SciFinder at the same time.
• Make use of the quick how-to-search guides for searches on research topics, structures, molecular formulas, author names, and other options.
• There are also tutorials, which provide excellent step-by-step instructions.

Web of Science

• Interdisciplinary science database, a heavily-used source for science literature. Use for basic searches, and especially for citation-chain searches

Other Sites and Free Online Resources

Encyclopedia of Biological Chemistry

• In-depth articles with good background information on proteins, protein dynamics.

Fundamental Physical Constants

• CODATA Internationally recommended values of the Fundamental Physical Constants

Gale Virtual Reference Library

• You can search the whole collection, or see particularly Chemistry: Foundations & Applications.

Index to Physical, Chemical and Other Property Data

• From Arizona State-some of the online resources are for ASU only, but many of the books can also be found in the UO Science Library.

Materials Properties Locator Database from SUNY Buffalo.

• Helps to locate reference books containing property data. Searchable by property and type of material. The UO Science Library will have some, but not all, of these books.

NanoHUB.org

• simulations with over 160 tools for nanoelectronics, nanophotonics and more
• research and collaborate, question board and more
• learn with tool-powered curricula, courses, seminars and more

NIST Chemistry WebBook

• National Institute of Standards and Technology thermochemical, thermophysical and spectral data for thousands of compounds and reactions.

NMRShiftDB

• An open access NMR database for compound identification and support for computer-assisted structure elucidation. Contains about 10,000 structures and assigned spectra, with new datasets constantly added.

Oxford Reference Online: Physical Sciences

• Dictionaries of chemistry, physics, etc.

Print Reference Sources

• Search the catalog to locate reference books (print and online) and other materials.
• The following are in the Science Library reference section (see the floor map)

Encyclopedia of Applied Physics. SCI REF QC5 .E543 2004 (12 vols.)

• A good source of background information on everything from protein dynamics to electronics to quantum optics, and much more.

Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology, 3rd ed. (8 vols.) SCI REF TP1110 .E53 2003

Optics Encyclopedia: Basic Foundations and Applications. SCI REF QC351.2 .O62 2004

• Want an explanation of, say, interferometry and all the different types of interferometers? This is the place.

Physical Properties of Polymers Handbook, 2nd ed. SCI REF TA455 .P58 P475 2007

Springer Handbook of Condensed Matter and Materials Data. SCI REF QC173.454 .S67 2005

• Properties and other information on many classes of materials.

Citing Resources

There are several free resources that can help you collect article citations, and create bibliographies for articles and reports.

Zotero - a plugin for Firefox that is "a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources."

Mendeley - enables you to manage citations, and view and share citations and papers from other people and groups. Requires a component that you can install on your computer. The two pieces work together to help you collect citations, but also enable you to share citations with other groups, and search the papers they have viewed and cited.

Data Management Basics

See the guide to managing research data for information on

• the best file formats for long-term storage,
• how to document your data (metadata standards),
• data centers and repositories,
• file naming conventions, and
• how to create a data management plan.