[sampo]

Write one influential paper. Then all the later papers in the same sub-subfield probably cite your paper. Go to Google Scholar and check the latest citations to your paper.

Ok, it doesn't need to be your paper. Just find a paper that was so influential that others working on the same problem probably will cite it, and monitor the new citations.

[chrisamiller]

I came in to say exactly this. Google Scholar alerts are incredibly useful.

[dredmorbius]

So, that's close to how I operate (basically bibliography-surfing), though with one handicap: what do you use to track citations?

Particularly something that's generally open.

Best tool I've got ready access to is Google Scholar. There are citations indices I can get access to, by going on-site to a specific facility, but that's pretty limiting when the rest of my work can be done (and the bulk of my materials) are in my office.

(And yes, I'm aware that having to go to where the indices are is how it Used to Be Done, and in fact, I Did That. Technology has moved on.)

[devin]

Huh, that seems so obvious in retrospect. This is basically how I've grown into jazz. I find someone I like, find out who they played with, who those folks played with, and so on.