Scientific investigation (8)
'scientific investigation' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for research that I've seen before include "Look into" , "Scientific investigation" , "Investigate through study" , "material for investigation" , "enquiry" .)
(Other definitions for study that I've seen before include "Scrutinize" , "Contemplate" , "See 11" , "Writing-room" , "Examine carefully" .)