We’re wired to process visuals faster than the written word. By using visual literature maps to review research, you can rapidly form connections and enhance your understanding of your research topic.
You can use Litmaps to:
See article connections and relative importance
Distinguish high-impact, historical, and cutting-edge work
Organize your topics and sub-topics
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What is a Litmap?
A Litmap (short for "literature map") visualizes scientific articles based on how they connect via citations and references.
References are the articles used in a research paper. They are listed in the References section of the paper.
Citations refer to all future work which cites a research paper. These can be found using certain search databases like Litmaps.
Litmaps visualizations show how a given set of articles connect via their citations and references. Dots represent articles, and lines represent connection.
When using Litmaps as a search tool, you can discover relevant literature that connects to the given input articles.
In the example below, a new article suggestion is found that doesn't directly connect to the original article.
You can adjust the Map display in order to better view the literature landscape, prioritize what papers to read, or identify certain types of articles.
How to change the axes on a Litmap
You can adjust how the articles on a Litmap are arranged by changing the axes or moving articles around manually.
Click on the axes labels to change them.
Litmaps axes options
You can sort articles on a Litmap by several different measures by updating the X and Y axes. To change the axes, click on one of the axes labels.
Cite Count
The article's number of citations.
Ref Count
The article's number of references
Publication Date
The date the article was published.
Momentum
Cited Count adjusted for recency of publication. Click the additional settings to adjust the slider. This will help you distinguish new articles that have a significant impact based on citation, despite how recent they are.
Map Connectivity
The article's number of citations within this map. This helps you find which articles are most tightly connected to your topic. Note, this field used to be called Map Relevance.
Use Litmap axes to find certain articles
You can use Litmaps to rapidly spot the latest work in a field, the historical papers to know, or novel contributions. You can do this by altering how the articles are visualized, based on the X and Y axes.
Below is a breakdown of the most common types of articles researchers look for, and how to set your Map up to visually spot them in Litmaps.
Find | X-axis | Y-axis | Look for articles: |
Review papers | Date | Reference Count | Towards the top left |
High-impact work | Date | Citation Count | Towards the top |
Cutting-edge papers | Momentum | Map Connectivity | Towards the top right |
Papers most relevant to your topic | Date | Map Connectivity | Towards the top |
How to change the recommendations display
In addition to changing the axes, you can also change how article recommendations are returned visually.
When exploring recommendations in Litmaps, you may select one of four different visual displays:
Standard [default]: All articles are visualized on the same Litmap. All are sorted based on the axes.
Ring: Recommendations are in the outer ring, and input articles are on the inside of the circle. Only input articles sorted based on the axes.
Side by Side: Recommendations are at the top of the visual, separate from the input articles at the bottom. All are sorted based on the axes.
By Author: Like Side by Side, except authors are also displayed on the map.
Only articles saved to the Litmap (the inputted articles in the search) can have custom positions, which will override the axes sorting for any of these views.
These views are available only when exploring articles in Litmaps. If you don't see these options, make sure to enable Explore mode by clicking "Explore Related Articles" on your Map's homepage.
How to annotate a Litmap
You can use Litmaps to review a set of articles, arrange them manually and create an annotated display that showcases an entire field or project.
"Annotations" refer to text graphics on the Litmap. To add an annotation:
Go to the Home view of your Map*
Select either the box or text annotation tools
*If you're in Explore mode, you'll need to click the back arrow at the top left to exit Explore mode before you can use the design tools.
💡 Did you know? You can use special settings when taking an image of your Litmap to use elsewhere.
How to annotate articles on a Litmap
You can change how articles appear on a Litmap by adding custom labels, changing the article's color, or using a different icon.
To change how an article is visualized:
Go to the Home view of your Map*
Click on an article
Click the paint brush icon
Edit either the
Label
Halo color
Icon
*If you're in Explore mode, you'll need to click the back arrow at the top left to exit Explore mode before you can use the design tools.
How to edit articles on a Litmap
In addition to adjust the visual layout and representation of a Litmap, you can also adjust how articles connect. You can add or remove citations, and create custom articles.
How to set custom positions on a Litmap
You can give custom positions for articles on a Litmap by moving them to specific locations. These locations will be saved and used instead of the sorting options on the axes.
To move articles on a Litmap:
Select one or more articles on your Map
Move them to a new location
Keep in mind, you can only do this for article saved to your Litmap. Recommendations cannot be moved.
How to reset custom positions
You can reset articles back to being sorted based on the axes and remove their custom positions. To reset article positions:
Click on an axis
Click "Reset all" next to Custom Positions
