Chemistry & Biochemistry: Journal Articles / Patents

Databases for Journal Articles, Patents, and Conference Proceedings

These are the key databases that index the chemistry and biochemistry literature--journal articles and (depending on the database) conference papers and patents. The articles are either full text within the database or easily accessible through a link in the record. You can also use the button to get to the article or request a copy through interlibrary loan.

You can also use UC Library Search to find articles. To limit results to journal articles, select Peer-reviewed Journals under Show Only in the search results.

Web of Science
Good place to begin your search of the science and engineering literature (articles and conference papers), indexing 18,000+ journals and 180,000 conference proceedings. Easy interface for building "and/or" searches to include alternative keywords. Article records include bibliographies of the articles cited, the articles that subsequently cited your article in question, and related articles identified based on common citations.
SciFinder-n
Essential index to the chemical literature and related sciences, including chemical engineering, materials science, & nanotechnology. Search 52 million article and patent references, CAS Registry (204 million substances, many include property data information and spectra) & CASREACT (millions of single and multi-step reactions and million synthetic preparations). Search by topic/keyword, author, chemical substance (Registry number, chemical name, structure, substructure) or chemical reaction.
- First-time SciFinder-n users at UCSD must register to create an account. VPN is required to access the registration information from off campus.
Reaxys
Chemical information database for 53+ million substances and 64+ million reaction, indexed from the journal/patent literature An essential complement to SciFinder for substance and reaction searching. Searchable by chemical names, CAS numbers, structures, reactions, substructures, properties (using the query builder) and topic/keyword. Extensive source for physical property data, indexing hundreds of property fields, and each data point includes a journal article or patent reference.
PubMed
Core index to the biomedical literature, with 36+ million journal article references from journals in medicine and related sciences. Excellent for biochemistry and other bio- topics like bionano-, biomaterials, and biomedical engineering. Search results are "mapped" to the database's subject headings to retrieve additional articles, For these topics, you may also want to search Embase.
Google Scholar
A better alternative to searching Google because it searches the scholarly literature rather than "everything." Very limited tools for refining searches, but you can go into the advanced search to limit a word or phrase be found in the title only. Indexes at the full text article level so it may identify articles not found in other databases. Using Google Scholar Advanced Search (1-min video)
- You can check a box on the search results page to include patent results, but if you only want to search on patents, it's easier to search Google Patents.
MarinLit
Database focused on natural products chemistry. You can search by bibliographic information, taxonomy, location, chemical structure, and physical property data.
Compendex + Inspec on Engineering Village
Single platform for cross searching Compendex and Inspec for finding journal articles, conference papers, and other documents. Covers all aspects of engineering, including electrical, computer, structural, mechanical, aerospace, chemical, ocean, biomedical, and environmental engineering, as well as physics and related disciplines. Duplicate references between the two databases can be removed.
Materials Science & Engineering Database
Database for materials science and engineering research, indexing journals, magazines, newspapers, and grey literature (patents, conference proceedings, technical reports), with some full-text access. Covers topics in metals, polymers, ceramics, composites, and biomaterials. Includes Earthquake Engineering Abstracts, Engineered Materials Abstracts, METADEX, Corrosion Abstracts, and Ceramic Abstracts.
Academic Search Complete
Multidisciplinary database that indexes articles in more than 11,000 journals, with full-text available for over 5,300 journals. Indexes scholarly sources and popular ones like magazines and newspapers, but you can limit results to one or the other.