World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

D-Index
81
Citations
21028
World Ranking
199
National Ranking
97

Alexander Smits publication distribution in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Alexander Smits sits on this spectrum.

47–56 publications: 10 scientists 57–66 publications: 23 scientists 67–76 publications: 32 scientists 77–86 publications: 62 scientists 87–96 publications: 67 scientists 97–106 publications: 91 scientists 107–116 publications: 113 scientists 117–126 publications: 114 scientists 127–136 publications: 130 scientists 137–146 publications: 140 scientists 147–156 publications: 155 scientists 157–166 publications: 132 scientists 167–176 publications: 133 scientists 177–186 publications: 130 scientists 187–196 publications: 140 scientists 197–206 publications: 115 scientists 207–216 publications: 125 scientists 217–226 publications: 117 scientists 227–236 publications: 99 scientists 237–246 publications: 92 scientists 247–256 publications: 100 scientists 257–266 publications: 95 scientists 267–276 publications: 88 scientists 277–286 publications: 77 scientists 287–296 publications: 74 scientists 297–306 publications: 74 scientists 307–316 publications: 61 scientists 317–326 publications: 69 scientists 327–336 publications: 59 scientists 337–346 publications: 58 scientists 347–356 publications: 45 scientists 357–366 publications: 44 scientists 367–376 publications: 36 scientists 377–386 publications: 41 scientists 387–396 publications: 32 scientists 397–406 publications: 23 scientists 407–416 publications: 28 scientists 417–426 publications: 27 scientists 427–436 publications: 25 scientists 437–446 publications: 23 scientists 447–456 publications: 23 scientists 457–466 publications: 20 scientists 467–476 publications: 12 scientists 477–486 publications: 24 scientists 487–496 publications: 18 scientists 497–506 publications: 12 scientists 507–516 publications: 13 scientists 517–526 publications: 21 scientists 527–536 publications: 12 scientists 537–546 publications: 8 scientists 547–556 publications: 16 scientists 557–566 publications: 3 scientists 567–576 publications: 11 scientists 577–586 publications: 6 scientists 587–596 publications: 5 scientists 597–606 publications: 6 scientists 607–616 publications: 7 scientists 617–626 publications: 7 scientists 627–636 publications: 10 scientists 637–646 publications: 4 scientists 647–656 publications: 3 scientists 657–658 publications: 2 scientists 659+ publications: 100 scientists
47 publications 659+

This scientist: 598 publications — 96th percentile

96% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 659 publications or more.

Alexander Smits D-index placement in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Alexander Smits sits on this spectrum.

30 D-Index: 83 scientists 31 D-Index: 113 scientists 32 D-Index: 144 scientists 33 D-Index: 153 scientists 34 D-Index: 189 scientists 35 D-Index: 158 scientists 36 D-Index: 139 scientists 37 D-Index: 127 scientists 38 D-Index: 130 scientists 39 D-Index: 125 scientists 40 D-Index: 104 scientists 41 D-Index: 100 scientists 42 D-Index: 106 scientists 43 D-Index: 101 scientists 44 D-Index: 103 scientists 45 D-Index: 79 scientists 46 D-Index: 88 scientists 47 D-Index: 70 scientists 48 D-Index: 83 scientists 49 D-Index: 44 scientists 50 D-Index: 64 scientists 51 D-Index: 56 scientists 52 D-Index: 50 scientists 53 D-Index: 48 scientists 54 D-Index: 58 scientists 55 D-Index: 52 scientists 56 D-Index: 48 scientists 57 D-Index: 42 scientists 58 D-Index: 34 scientists 59 D-Index: 42 scientists 60 D-Index: 37 scientists 61 D-Index: 42 scientists 62 D-Index: 44 scientists 63 D-Index: 22 scientists 64 D-Index: 33 scientists 65 D-Index: 29 scientists 66 D-Index: 23 scientists 67 D-Index: 29 scientists 68 D-Index: 24 scientists 69 D-Index: 19 scientists 70 D-Index: 34 scientists 71 D-Index: 26 scientists 72 D-Index: 19 scientists 73 D-Index: 18 scientists 74 D-Index: 19 scientists 75 D-Index: 14 scientists 76 D-Index: 19 scientists 77 D-Index: 8 scientists 78 D-Index: 18 scientists 79 D-Index: 16 scientists 80 D-Index: 12 scientists 81 D-Index: 17 scientists 82 D-Index: 11 scientists 83 D-Index: 16 scientists 84 D-Index: 7 scientists 85 D-Index: 9 scientists 86 D-Index: 8 scientists 87 D-Index: 6 scientists 88 D-Index: 6 scientists 89 D-Index: 7 scientists 90 D-Index: 10 scientists 91 D-Index: 4 scientists 92 D-Index: 4 scientists 93+ D-Index: 99 scientists
30 D-Index 93+

This scientist: 81 D-Index — 95th percentile

95% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 93 D-Index or more.

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in United States Leader Award
  • 2020 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 2019 - Fluid Dynamics Prize, American Physical Society (APS)
  • 2011 - Member of the National Academy of Engineering For contributions to the measurement and understanding of turbulent flows, fluids engineering, and education.
  • 2011 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • 2007 - Fluids Engineering Award, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
  • 2005 - Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers
  • 1997 - Fellow of American Physical Society (APS) Citation For unique contributions that have increased our physical understanding of how turbulent boundary layers are influenced by Reynolds number, Mach number, curvature, shocks, and other perturbations

Overview

Alexander Smits is affiliated with Princeton University in the United States and works primarily in the field of engineering. Their research focuses on areas within computational mechanics, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, environmental engineering, and global and planetary change.

Their main research topics include:

  • Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows
  • Wind and Air Flow Studies
  • Heat Transfer Mechanisms
  • Fluid Dynamics and Vibration Analysis
  • Aerodynamics and Acoustics in Jet Flows
  • Particle Dynamics in Fluid Flows
  • Aerodynamics and Fluid Dynamics Research

Alexander Smits has numerous publications, with frequent appearances in the following venues:

  • Journal of Fluid Mechanics
  • arXiv (Cornell University)
  • Physical Review Fluids
  • Experiments in Fluids
  • AIAA Journal

Notable recent papers include:

  • "An energy-efficient pathway to turbulent drag reduction," 2021, Nature Communications
  • "Swimmers' wake structures are not reliable indicators of swimming performance," 2020, Bioinspiration & Biomimetics
  • "Batchelor Prize Lecture: Measurements in wall-bounded turbulence," 2022, Journal of Fluid Mechanics
  • "The effect of blade geometry on the structure of vertical axis wind turbine wakes," 2020, Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics
  • "Turbulent drag reduction by spanwise wall forcing. Part 2. High-Reynolds-number experiments," 2023, Journal of Fluid Mechanics

Alexander Smits has collaborated frequently with several researchers, including:

  • Marcus Hultmark
  • Liuyang Ding
  • Ivan Maruŝiĉ
  • Dileep Chandran
  • Amirreza Rouhi

The scientist has received multiple awards and recognitions, such as:

  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2020
  • Fluid Dynamics Prize, American Physical Society, 2019
  • Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2011
  • Member of the National Academy of Engineering, 2011, for contributions to the measurement and understanding of turbulent flows, fluids engineering, and education
  • Fluids Engineering Award, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2007
  • Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 2005
  • Fellow of American Physical Society, 1997, recognized for unique contributions to physical understanding of turbulent boundary layers influenced by Reynolds number, Mach number, curvature, shocks, and other perturbations

Best Publications

  • Mean-flow scaling of turbulent pipe flow

    Mark V. Zagarola;Alexander J. Smits

  • High–Reynolds Number Wall Turbulence

    Alexander J. Smits;Beverley J. McKeon;Ivan Marusic

  • Wall-bounded turbulent flows at high Reynolds numbers: Recent advances and key issues

    Ivan Marusic;Beverley J McKeon;Peter A Monkewitz;Hassan M Nagib

  • On the logarithmic region in wall turbulence

    Ivan Marusic;Jason Patrick Monty;Marcus Hultmark;Alexander Smits

  • Energy harvesting eel

    J.J. Allen;A.J. Smits

  • Turbulent Shear Layers in Supersonic Flow

    Alexander J. Smits;Jean-Paul Dussauge

  • Turbulent pipe flow at extreme Reynolds numbers.

    Marcus Hultmark;Margit Vallikivi;Sean Christoper Collison Bailey;Alexander Smits

  • Further observations on the mean velocity distribution in fully developed pipe flow

    B. J McKeon;Jun-de Li;W Jiang;J. F Morrison

  • Undulatory and oscillatory swimming

    Alexander J. Smits

  • Roughness effects in turbulent pipe flow

    M Shockling;James Allen;Alexander Smits

  • The Physics of Supersonic Turbulent Boundary Layers

    Eric F. Spina;Alexander J. Smits;Stephen K. Robinson

  • A new friction factor relationship for fully developed pipe flow

    Beverley McKeon;M Zagarola;Alexander Smits

  • Scaling of the streamwise velocity component in turbulent pipe flow

    J. F. Morrison;B. J. McKeon;W. Jiang;Alexander Smits

  • Horseshoe vortex systems resulting from the interaction between a laminar boundary layer and a transverse jet

    R. M. Kelso;Alexander Smits

  • Friction factors for smooth pipe flow

    B. J. McKeon;C. J. Swanson;M. V. Zagarola;R. J. Donnelly

  • Scaling the propulsive performance of heaving flexible panels

    Daniel B. Quinn;George V. Lauder;Alexander J. Smits

  • Scaling laws for the thrust production of flexible pitching panels

    Peter A. Dewey;Birgitt M. Boschitsch;Keith W. Moored;Howard A. Stone

  • The wake structure and thrust performance of a rigid low-aspect-ratio pitching panel

    James H. J. Buchholz;Alexander J. Smits

  • The effect of short regions of high surface curvature on turbulent boundary layers

    Alexander Smits;S. T.B. Young;P. Bradshaw

  • Experimental study of three shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interactions

    Alexander J. Smits;Kin Choong Muck

  • On the evolution of the wake structure produced by a low-aspect-ratio pitching panel.

    James H. J. Buchholz;Alexander J. Smits

  • Thrust production and wake structure of a batoid-inspired oscillating fin.

    R. P. Clark;Alexander Smits

Frequent Co-Authors

Ivan Marusic
Ivan Marusic University of Melbourne
Beverley McKeon
Beverley McKeon California Institute of Technology
Howard A. Stone
Howard A. Stone Princeton University
Clarence W. Rowley
Clarence W. Rowley Princeton University
Jason Monty
Jason Monty University of Melbourne
George V. Lauder
George V. Lauder Harvard University
Nicholas Hutchins
Nicholas Hutchins University of Melbourne
Bharathram Ganapathisubramani
Bharathram Ganapathisubramani University of Southampton
Julio Soria
Julio Soria Monash University
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw Stanford University

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