Knowledge recombination, external collaborations and firms' innovatitve capabilities

The technological field of silica aerogel has caught the attention, in the last years, of many firms, which have, therefore, invested in the development and application of this nanotechnology. In our study, we examine this field of research - which has seen a drastic increase in the number of published patents - with a patents analysis. Because patents are correlated with the innovation activity they can indicate innovations. The main goal is the search of characteristics of innovations that can increase the possibility of determining success and creating value for the firms. We consider specifically the possibility of creating successful innovations through the recombination of different knowledge.