Following his graduation Potapov was appointed a head of scientific department in an Uzbekresearch institute, leading ethnographic expeditions to various areas of Uzbekistan. Doctor of Historical sciences, professor, "Tuva ASSR Honored Worker of Science", an outstanding researcher of history and culture of Altaians, Shors, Khakases, Tuvinians and other peoples of southern Siberia. He continued to collect material, publishing his first major text Essays on Shoria history in 1931 and continued with his post graduate work at the USSR Academy of Sciences. He accepted Marxism-Leninism and its application to ethnography. After completing his postgraduate study, Potapov headed the Siberia and ethnography department of the State Ethnographical Museum of the USSR peoples in the Kunstkamera and conducted research work at the USSR Academy of Science's History of Material Culture Institute. In 1939, Potapov gained a PhD in Historical Sciences, presenting the monograph Relicts of primitive-communal system of Altai peoples. By that time Potapov had published about 30 works, including a number of monographs. At the beginning of the World War II Potapov worked on the evacuation of museum valuables, moving with the museum collection to Novosibirsk in 1942. In 1946 he published Altaians and was appointed professor. he then headed the Khakass ethnographic expedition, spending the next 11 years with various expeditions to Altai, Shoria, Khakassia and Tuva. He broadened his research materials on shamanism incorporating non-soviet sources. Potapov focussed on pre-Islam beliefs of peoples of Central Asia, ethnogenesis, ethnographic materials, archival, written and archeological sources. In 1948 Potapov published "Essays on history of Altaians", which was awarded with "Stalin" premium. He contributed to Essays on the USSR history, History of the USSR, the five-volume History of Siberia and published Brief Esasay on culture and a life of Altaians, Brief Essays on history and ethnography of Khakases , Origin and formation of Khakass nation, Ethnic Composition and Origin of Altaians, Essays on native life of Tuvinians. From 1957 to 1966 the Tuva Archeological Ethnographical Expedition worked on studies of ethnogenesis and history of Tuvinians. working with A.D. Grach, S.I. Weinstein and V.P. Diakonova, he edited the three-volume Works of Tuva complex archeological ethnographical expedition. Participants wrote a collective monograph "History of Tuva". In 1956 Potapov wrote chapters on 'Altaians', 'Khakases', 'Tuvinians' and 'Shors' for the Peoples of Siberia in Nations of the world series, published also in English by the University of Chicago. Potapov participated in the 23rd and 25th congresses of Orientalists, and in the 6th and 7th congresses of anthropologists and ethnographers. Potapov created a scientific school studying the peoples of Siberia, especially the Sayan-Altai region, and prepared 48 PhD in sciences. A special scientific contribution was his work Altai shamanism with a rich collection of material brought from uncountable field research materials. Potapov joined the names of N.N. Poppe, V.I. Tsintsius, A.N. Kononov, N.A. Baskakov, A.M. Scherbak who were awarded "PIAK Gold medal" for Altaic studies.
