Survey Theoretical Literature

Conduct a structured survey of theoretical literature on a defined topic, producing a synthesis that maps seminal contributions, traces the chronological development of key ideas, identifies open problems and active research frontiers, and highlights cross-domain connections.

When to Use

• Starting research on an unfamiliar theoretical topic and needing to map the landscape
• Writing a literature review section for a paper, thesis, or grant proposal
• Identifying open problems and gaps in a theoretical field
• Finding connections between a theoretical result and work in adjacent fields
• Evaluating the novelty of a proposed theoretical contribution against existing work

Inputs

• Required: Topic description (specific enough to bound the search; e.g., "topological phases in non-Hermitian systems" not just "topology")
• Required: Scope constraints (time period, subfields to include/exclude, theoretical vs. experimental focus)
• Optional: Known seed papers (papers the requester already knows, to anchor the search)
• Optional: Target audience and depth (introductory overview vs. expert-level survey)
• Optional: Desired output format (annotated bibliography, narrative review, concept map)