Abstract:    The agglomeration structure and function of science and technology service industry are closely related to the demands and conditions of regional innovation. Recent research shows that the existing functions and layout of science and technology service industry in China cannot meet the innovation service needs of high-tech manufacturing industries, so it is an urgent task to pay attention to the reasonable adjustment of science and technology service industry structure. By using the methods of Herfindahl Diversified Index (HDI), Location Entropy and Grey Correlation Degree Analysis, this paper makes analyses on the agglomeration scale, space-time distribution, structural characteristics and locational factors of science and technology service industry in China′s 31 provincial-level regions from the year of 2003 to 2018. 
    There are some important findings as follows. First, the science and technology service industry are highly concentrated in the developed provincial-level regions with high innovation level and large-scale innovation service demands, and the scale gap among provincial-level regions is gradually narrowing with time. Second, the evolution trends of the three sub formats for science and technology service industry are as follows: the specialized agglomeration of research & development service is growing and the agglomeration center shifts eastwards, the specialized agglomeration of professional technical service is decreasing and the agglomeration center shifts westwards, and the specialized agglomeration of science-technology promotion and application service is growing with characteristics of provincial uniform distribution. Third, the science and technology service industry mainly presents three characteristics of three agglomeration structure types of single format, one principal-one subsidiary and multi formats, two evolution trends that research & development service or science-technology promotion and application service may prevail in the future agglomeration structure, as well as four evolution paths of agglomeration structure. Fourth, the agglomeration structure of science and technology service industry is influenced by locational factors, while there are influencing factor differences among three service formats. 
    Combined with the characteristics of the agglomeration structure of science and technology service industry in China and the differences of location factors among provincial-level regions, this paper puts forward relevant countermeasures and suggestions for science and technology service industry development from four aspects: 1) promote the sequential and interactive development of science and technology service industry among provincial-level regions according to the heterogeneity of spatial distribution and location factors of science and technology service industry; 2) developed provincial-level regions should focus on the adjustment of the agglomeration structure, and less developed provincial-level regions should continue to promote the agglomeration degree of science and technology services; 3) make policies on science and technology service industry development based on the locational factors of each provincial-level region; and 4) focus on two sub formats of science and technology service industry in the future including research & development service and science-technology promotion and application service. 
   This research may be helpful for us to grasp the space-time evolution law and the locational factors of Chinese science and technology service industry agglomeration, and it has a positive role in optimizing regional science and technology service industry development planning and policy, improving the agglomeration structure of science and technology service industry and promoting the quality and level of science and technology service.

Key words: science and technology service industry, agglomeration structure, locational factor, specialization, diversification