How to get published in IOP Journals

1. How to get published in IOP Journals Mingfang Lu, PhD, FInstP Professor of Plasma Physics Chief Representative/Editorial Director IOP Beijing Office Mingfang.lu@iop.org Peking University 29 August 2004 www.iop.org

2. Outline • Why publish? • What is peer review? • Preparing the manuscript • Selecting the journal • Submitting the manuscript • Process at the journal • Responding to reviewers

3. Why publish? • Getting papers published is the only way to make an impact in your field of research • Publications play an important role in career advancement and securing funding • Journals are a key part of scientific communication

4. What is peer review? • Independent assessment by experts in the field • Referees provide constructive criticism and feedback on your paper • A ‘filter’ for scientific quality control • Publishing a paper in a peer-reviewed journal gives more credibility to your work than if you post it on your own web site • Peer review is an essential part of obtaining a grant or publishing in a journal

5. Preparing the manuscript • Original work • Not previously published • Not under consideration for publication in any other journal • Scientific quality not quantity of papers • Ethical code: • Research results • Authorship practices

6. Helpful techniques for writing your paper • Focus on new and important research results • Make sure the language is clear and precise, especially your conclusions • Ensure that figures and tables are clear • Ensure that the paper is of the right length

7. More helpful tips for preparing your manuscript • Allow time for rewriting • Use figures instead of tables • Ask a colleague to read and comment on an early draft • Avoid using too much jargon • Check the structure of the paper: • Title and Abstract • Introduction • Results and Discussion • Conclusion • References

8. Selecting the journal • Choose the right one for you

9. Selecting the journal (contd) • Check the audience and scope of the journal • You can find it in the printed version or on the Web • IoP Journals web site - Most recently published IoP papers are available for FREE (journals.iop.org) • Contact the Publisher or Editor if in doubt • Contact IoP’s Beijing office • Browse the back issues to understand the journal’s style and scope

10. Selecting the journal (contd) • Which publisher? Why does it matter? • Commercial (Elsevier Science, Wiley, Taylor and Francis, Kluwer Academic Publishers) • Society publishers (Institute of Physics Publishing, American Physical Society, German Physical Society, Chinese Physical Society)

11. Selecting the journal (contd) • Prestige • Speed of publication • Electronic publication means papers are published online in advance of printed version • Visibility • E.g. all papers published in IOP journals are free online for 30 days from publication • Search facilities in online version ensure other people can find your work easily • Alerting service

12. Submitting the manuscript: visit the journal home page For authors

13. Submitting the manuscript: instructions for authors Author guidelines

14. Submitting the manuscript: Web, e-mail or hard copy Fill in online form

15. Process at the journal • Editor acknowledges your paper • Editor selects referees for the paper • Referees send their reports back to the Editor • Editor makes decision based on referee reports • Adjudicator is selected if the reports are conflicting

16. Referees’ assessment: Scientific Quality • Scientific merit: significant new results and originality • Accurate and correct • Sufficient discussion of the context of the work, and suitable referencing • Suitable material for the Journal

17. QUALITY ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR IOP JOURNALS • Q1 [ ] Makes major contributions to the advancement of the subject world-wide • Q2 [ ] Sound, original and internationally competitive • Q3 [ ] Sound, original but of limited interest • Q4 [ ] Sound but adds little new knowledge to the subject • Q5 [ ] Mundane work, not appropriate to an international journal • Q1 or Q2 papers are expected • Q3 papers may get accepted or rejected • Q4 or Q5 papers will be rejected

18. Referees’ assessment: Presentation • Title: is it adequate/appropriate? • Abstract: is it complete by itself and suitable for direct inclusion in an abstracting service? • Diagrams, tables, and captions: are they clear and essential? • Text and mathematics: are they brief but still clear? • Conclusion: does it summarise what has been learned and why it is interesting and useful? • References: objective and up-to-date • Clear writing and communication of ideas, readability and discussion of concepts

19. Responding to referees’ comments • Read referees’ report and put away for a day! • Read them again! • Respond to each and every comment specifically • Keep a list of your changes • Where you disagree, explain why • If referee misses a point it is not necessarily his/her fault • Be polite! • Prepare a detailed covering letter with your response

20. If your paper is rejected • Do not despair: treat referees’ comments as a free expert advice • You can re-write your article taking into account the suggestions of the referees and re-submit it • If you think the review was unfair, appeal to the journal by sending a letter and explaining why you think your work did not receive a fair treatment

21. If your paper is accepted • Great - celebrate! • The journal will expect you to check your proofs rapidly • Nominate another person if you are unavailable • Give one copy of proofs to somebody else to read • Reply to editor’s queries

22. Brief History • Founded in 1874 as “The Physical Society of London” - longest established society for the Physical Sciences • First journal - The Proceedings of the Physical Society of London 1874-1967 • 1917: Institute of Physics • Royal Charter: To promote the advancement and dissemination of a knowledge of and education in the science of physics, pure and applied.

24. Present Day • 37,000 members world-wide • Offices: London, Bristol, Munich, Philadelphia, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo • IoPP - Publishing arm of the Institute • 40 Journals • Electronic archive of all content (1874-2004) • 230 staff • International business • Winner of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise - three times • 90%+ of all journal and book sales outside United Kingdom • 90% of all article submissions from outside UK

25. IOP Beijing Office • Established in July 2000 • Contact top Chinese physicists and physics institutions • High quality papers from Chinese physicists to IOP journals • Chinese physicists as IOP referees and board members • Pre-refereeing and free English polish service to Chinese authors • Contact us: IOP Beijing Office Room A512, Institute of Physics Chinese Academy of Sciences 8 Zhong-Guan-Cun Nan San Jie PO Box 603-37, Beijing 100080, China Tel: +86 (0)10 82649679 Fax: +86 (0)10 82649678 E-mail: mingfang.lu@iop.org, iopchina@aphy.iphy.ac.cn www.iop.org

26. Questions ? • Welcome to submit more quality papers to IOP journals Please contact: mingfang.lu@iop.org, iopchina@aphy.iphy.ac.cn More at:www.iop.org

27. GOOD LUCK!!  • Thank you!