How to get published in IOP
journals
吕铭方 教授, 博士, FInstP
首席代表、IOP中国总编
英国物理学会北京代表处
Updated in February 2014
mingfang.lu@iop.org, China.iop.org, IOPscience.iop.org
Outline









Papers and their qualities from China
Quality - IOP criteria
What determines your quality
Select the journal and submit your paper
Process at the journal
What referees do for your paper
Responding to referees
Getting published in IOP Journals
Questions
Paper publications with IOP by mainland Chinese authors
Year
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
Submitted
Accepted
Acc rate=Acc/Sub
134
150
158
170
858
177
20.63%
1,132
196
17.31%
1,383
262
19.09%
1,550
468
30.2%
2,016
568
28.2%
2,505
624
24.9%
3,415
788
23.1%
4,282
1,125
26.3%
5,507
1,510
27.4%
6,627
1,562
23.6%
7,464
1,720
23.0%
7,037
1,556
22.1%
7,276
1,365
18.8%
7,572
1,453
19.2%
8,336 (No. 1)
1,990 (No. 2)
23.9%
2013 IOP全球范围接受投稿和接受论文情况
Journals
IOP
AAS
IOP+AAS
中国(No 2)
Submitted
35,985
2,241*
38,226
(8,336) 23.2%
Accepted
13,975
3,463
17,438
(1,990) 14.2%
Acceptance rate
38.8%
(*not all submissions)
45.6%
23.9%
2013 年其他主要国家向IOP投稿和发表论文情况
No. 1美国 3德国 4英国 5法国 6日本 7意大利 8西班牙 9韩国 10加拿大
投稿 5,410 2,430 2,076 1,548 1,480 1,310
997
1,410
838
接受 3,067 1,673 1,329 1,003 852 792
574
497
446
接受率 56.7% 68.8% 64.0% 64.8% 57.6% 60.5% 57.6% 35.2% 53.2%
http://IOPscience.iop.org/
QUALITY ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR IOP JOURNALS








Q1 Makes major contributions to the advancement of the
subject world-wide (top 10%)
Q2 Good quality work - original and internationally
competitive
Q3 Borderline work of limited interest
Q4 Low quality work - adds little or no new knowledge
Q5 Poor work, clearly unsuitable
Q1 or Q2 papers are expected
Q3 papers unlikely to be accepted
Q4 or Q5 papers will be rejected
2013 IOP发表中国大陆作者论文的质量水平
Quality rating
Q1
Q1.5
Q2
Q2.5
Q3
Q3.5
Q4
Q5
Total
Papers accepted
19
137
944
160
38
0
1
0
Percentage
Accumulated %
1.5%
10.5%
72.7%
12.3%
2.9%
Q1.5 better 12.0%
Q2 better 84.7%
Q2.5 better 97.0%
0.7%
1,299 (691 articles not given a Q-rating)
http://IOPscience.iop.org/
What determine your quality







Original work, novel and significant
 Report a major advance or a new approach
 Be set in context of previous research by yourself and others
Interest to the community
Have sound motivation and purpose
Not previously published
Not under consideration for publication in any other journal or
any other form
Scientific quality not quantity of papers
Ethical code:
 Research results – true, properly recorded
 Authorship practices – who can be your co-authors
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
The most important things to consider when writing a
research paper:
 Do you have original results to report to your peers?
 What should the format of the article be? Do you have all
of the references?
 Which journal do you want to publish in and do you
understand their submission procedures?
 Do you understand the process and requirements?
Something to avoid





Presenting new but trivial or obvious results
Making unsubstantiated conclusions
Burying new results beneath too much scene-setting
Recapping of findings already published
Presenting incremental research
 Being long winded – keep short
 ‘Flowery’ language
 Abbreviations and jargon
 Speculation or anecdotes – keep to the facts
 A ‘gimmicky’ title
 makes wild, unjustified claims
 Poor or incomplete references
 Poor quality figures
 Incomplete data
 Don’t cover up or ‘fudge’ the data
More helpful tips




Allow time for rewriting
Use figures instead of tables
Ask a colleague to read and comment on an
early draft
Check the structure of the paper:







Title – proper and complete
Abstract – more details, key words, PACS
Introduction – history, why, what you have done
Method – details and standard
Results and Discussion – fact and more
Conclusion – what you have achieved
References – objective and up-to-date
Selecting the journal

Choose the right one for you
网上投稿
Electronic Submission _Online

IOP投稿系统正在并将完全转换至 ScholarOne

要求所有稿件网上投稿： Online submission

适用于所有IOP主办的期刊，查询登陆
http://iopscience.iop.org/

投稿过程简单、快速、可靠！

问题和查询：mingfang.lu@iop.org
IOP is moving to ScholarOne
For internal use only
Online submission
电子投稿


Electronic Submission_常见问题
注意：

1、网上投稿后立即获得正式ID号。

2、下载论文的审稿PDF文件并认真检查，若有问题，要立即联
系编辑并发去正确的PDF文件供审稿。

3、编辑通讯邮件发给指定的通讯作者和主要邮件接收作者，如果你不
是并且未得到任何回音，请首先跟通讯作者查询。

4、论文格式按照投稿提示。

5、目前IOP正在过渡到ScholarOne，部分期刊还未改变。
问题和查询：mingfang.lu@iop.org
Post your manuscript to an OA site

You can post your manuscript on an open access
repository while submitting it to a journal, say,

http://arxiv.org/

http://eprintweb.org/

You get an ID and web link for it.
For internal use only
For internal use only
What is ORCID?
Process at the journal







Editor acknowledges your paper, assign a ref
number, e.g. JPCM-103288, NANO-121682
(Check with your corresponding author first!)
Pre-screening process
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
What referees do for your paper?





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 publishing in a
journal or obtaining a grant
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
Referees’ assessment: Presentation: TA+IMRaD+C







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
Introduction to refereeing and Guide for authors


Introduction to refereeing
IOP审稿指南

http://images.iop.org/referees-chinese/
http://images.iop.org/referees/
http://referees.iop.org

《IOP作者指南》(Introductory guide for authors)

http://cms.iopscience.org/3205ba4f-d278-11e1-9b7a-4d5160a0f0b4/index.html
http://authors.iop.org/atom/usermgmt.nsf/AuthorServices



More information...
•
Free introductory guides for authors and referees
http://www.ioppublishing.org/researchers
Currently available in English, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish
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
If your paper is rejected




Do not despair: treat referees’ comments
as a free expert advice
You may be able to re-write your article
taking into account the suggestions of
the referees and re-submit it
Note: If you re-submit the paper to any
IOP journal, you need to add enough
significant new results in 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
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
IOP Flagship Journals
 Journal
of Physics series
Journal of Physics – IOP flagship journals range
J Phys A: Mathematical & Theoretical (2012 IF: 1.766)
1. Quantum field theory
2. QFT/BEC overlap
3. Quantum information
4. Foundations of quantum mechanics
5. Open quantum open systems
6. Quantum condensed matter physics
7. Computational physics
8. Mathematical methods for materials and biology
J Phys B: Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics (2012 IF: 2.031)
1: Quantum optics and quantum information processing
2: Ultrafast science
3: Cold atoms and molecules
4: Novel light sources for atomic and molecular physics studies
Journal of Physics – IOP flagship journals range
J Phys CM: Condensed Matter (2012 IF: 2.355)
1. Surface, interface and atomic-scale science
2. Liquids, soft matter and biological physics
3. Nanostructures and nanoelectronics
4. Solid structure and lattice dynamics
5. Electronic structure, 6. Correlated electrons
7. Superconductors and metals, 8. Semiconductors
9. Dielectrics and ferroelectrics, 10. Magnetism and magnetic materials
-- All on fundamental CM physics, experimental, theoretical or simulation!
J Phys D: Applied Physics (2012 IF: 2.528)
1. Magnetism and magnetic materials
2. Applied interfaces
3. Photonics and semiconductors
4. Spintronics
5. Biomedical optics, biophotonics and biomagnetism
6. Tribology
7. Nanostructures and nanoelectronics
8. Terahertz physics
Journal of Physics – IOP flagship journals range
J Phys G: Nuclear and Particle Physics (2012 IF: 5.326)
1. Quark Matter / QGP / Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collisions
2. Cosmic Rays & Particle Astrophysics
3. Hadronic Physics
4. Neutrino physics
5. Nuclear Structure
6. Lattice QCD
7. Underground Lab Physics
SCI影响因子的计算:
A=2010年发表的论文数, B=2011年发表的论文数
C=(A+B)在2012年被引用的总次数 (能够追踪的)
2012 Impact Factor=C/(A+B)
发布时间: 2013年6月19日
IOP 74种期刊目录及最新SCI 影响因子 (1-7)

IOP最著名的期刊系列 -- Journal of Physics series


(2012 Impact Factor, published on 19 June 2013)
1. Journal of Physics A: Mathematical & Theoretical
(1.766)
2. (1) Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics
(2.031)
3. (2) Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter
(2.355)
4. Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics
(2.528)
5. (3) Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physics
(5.326)
6. Journal of Physics: Conference Series
(EI, CPCI-SCI)

7. New Journal of Physics





(4.063)
Notes:
1.
No page charge except NJP which is an open access journal.
2.
For journals marked (1) - (8), IOP Beijing Office provides free pre-refereeing and English
polishing services.
3.
For journals marked “*”, authors need to submit papers directly to their editorial offices,
please check IOPscience.iop.org, China.iop.org
IOP 74种期刊目录及SCI 索引和最新影响因子 (8-24)

(2012 ISI Impact Factor)
 8. 2D Materials
(new)
 9. The Astronomical Journal
(AAS, 4.965)
 10. The Astrophysical Journal
(AAS, 6.733)
 11. The Astrophysical Journal Letters
(AAS, 6.345)
 12. The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
(AAS, 16.238)
 13. *Applied Physics Express
(2.731)
 14. Biofabrication
(3.705)
 15. Bioinspiration & Biomimetics
(2.412)
 16. Biomedical Materials
(2.174)
 17. *Chinese Physics B
(CPS, 1.148)
 18. *Chinese Physics C
(CPS, 0.338)
 19. *Chinese Physics Letter
(CPS, 0.811)
 20. (4) Classical and Quantum Gravity
(3.562)
 21. * Communications in Theoretical Physics
(CPS, 0.954)
 22. Computational Science & Discovery
(new)
 23. Environmental Research Letters
(3.582)
 24. European Journal of Physics
(0.644)
All IOP Journals (25 - 42)


















25. * EPL (Europhysics Letters)
(2.260)
26. Fluid Dynamics Research
(0.758)
27. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (EI, CPCI-SCI)
28. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (EI, CPCI)
29. Inverse Problems
(1.896)
30. * Japanese Journal of Applied Physics
(1.067)
31. Journal of Breath Research
(2.571)
32. *Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
(6.036)
33. Journal of Geophysics and Engineering
(SGRI, Nanjing, 0.721)
34. *Journal of Instrumentation
(1.869)
35. Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering
(1.790)
36. Journal of Neural Engineering
(3.282)
37. (5) Journal of Optics
(1.990)
38. *Journal of Radiological Protection
(1.386)
39. Journal of Semiconductors
(new, Semi, CAS, China)
40. *Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
(1.866)
41. * Laser Physics
(2.545)
42. * Laser Physics Letters
(7.714)
All IOP Journals (43 – 60)


















43. Materials Research Express
(New)
44. Measurement Science and Technology
(1.435)
45. Methods and Applications in Fluorescence
(New)
46. *Metrologia
(1.902)
47. Modelling and Simulation in Materials Sci. & Eng.
(1.932)
48. (6) Nanotechnology
(3.842)
49. Nonlinearity
(1.602)
50. * Nuclear Fusion
(IAEA, 2.734)
51. * Physica Scripta
(1.032)
52. Physical Biology
(2.620)
53. Physics Education
54. Physics in Medicine and Biology
(2.701)
55. Physiological Measurement
(1.496)
56. Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
(2.369)
57. * Plasma Science and Technology
(IPP, 0.514)
58. Plasma Sources Science and Technology
(2.515)
59. Reports on Progress in Physics
(13.232)
60. * Research in Astronomy and Astrophysics
(NAOC, 1.348)
All IOP Journals (61 – 74)














1.
61. SciDAC Review
(DOE, new)
62. * Science and Technology of Advanced Materials (NIMS, 3.752)
63. * Science Foundation in China (NSFC)
64. (7) Semiconductor Science and Technology
(1.921)
65. Smart Materials and Structures
(2.024)
66. (8) Superconductor Science and Technology
(2.758)
67. Surface Topography: Metrology and Properties
(New)
68. Translational Materials Research
(New)
69. *Izvestiya: Mathematics (Turpion)
(0.640)
70. *Physics-Uspekhi (Turpion & UFN)
(1.865)
71. *Quantum Electronics (Turpion)
(0.823)
72. *Russian Chemical Reviews (Turpion)
(2.299)
73. *Russian Mathematical Surveys (Turpion)
(0.781)
74. *Sbornik: Mathematics (Turpion)
(0.595)
Notes:
For journals marked (1) - (8), IOP Beijing Office provides free pre-refereeing and
English polishing services. 2. For journals marked “*”, authors need to submit
papers directly to their editorial offices, please check IOPscience.iop.org
3 new
materials
sciences
journals are
now open for
submissions!
For internal use only
IOP期刊的显著特点, IOPscience.iop.org








双审稿人审稿机制，对作者更公平和更多的发表机会。
均为享誉国际的著名期刊，1,000人的一流国际编委，多名中国编委
广泛的传播性， 电子期刊达到全球180多个国家和地区的4,000多个研究机构
，包括所有200多个世界最著名实验室。2013年被点击超过9500万次，全文
下载超过2300万次。
所有IOP期刊均不收取版面费, 运行经费完全来自期刊的销售 (NJP 除外，OA)
全电子服务：esub, eStatus, eSearch, eAlert, RRS 方便作者投稿和阅读。
审稿和出版速度快，JPCM：Receipt to First Decision = 20 days, Receipt
to Acceptance = 45 days, Receipt to Web Publication = 90 days; 网上出
版可快至20天、平均2-3个月或更快。NJP 的最快记录只有25小时，CPC大亚
湾中微子理论论文，只有几个小时；前提是保证论文和出版质量。
免费附加多媒体附件，免费附加“活”的公式、数据库，彩色图片、中文姓名
、视频摘要和动画电影片段等， 向读者充分介绍自己的研究结果和过程。
自1874年成立以来140年的过刊全部全文上网，总计超过47万篇论文和291万
页的物理学，包括许多荣获诺贝尔奖的经典之作。（中国已订购国家许可！）
注册电子邮件通知服务_ Email Alert at IOPscience.iop.org
IOP的开放获取(OA)及其相关版权政策 (I)

OA – 不仅是免费在线阅读和下载全文，使用者还有更多的使用权利。

IOP支持OA，作者或机构付出版费(APC)的“金”OA更具有可持续性
，能够保证审稿、编辑和出版的质量。“绿色”OA – 作者可以上传论
文的“接受版本”至机构存档网站 – 被许多资助机构所接受。

IOP有7种“金” OA期刊包括：NJP, ERL, JPCS, MSE, EES,等。

IOP的订阅期刊，作者也可以选择OA出版，支付出版费即可 – 混合
OA，包括27种期刊。IOP同时会降低期刊订阅价格，避免向订户重复
收费。

IOP“金”OA作者可立即上传“正式发表版本”至机构等网站；非OA
论文需要在12-24个月禁止期之后可上传“接受版本”-“绿色” OA。
IOP的开放获取(OA)及其相关版权政策 (II)

IOP从2012年10月25日开始对OA论文和参考文献数据采用《知识共
享许可协议(CC-BY 3.0}》, 即使用者只要准确引用原文即可几乎没有
限制地使用和再创作，包括但不限于非商业或商业目的。
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/)

从2013年4月起，所有获得英国政府资助的研究项目均必须以OA发表
论文。

SCOAP3 –由CERN主导的专门资助高能物理与粒子物理领域OA出版
的机构(http://scoap3.org/) (更多请参见：
http://iopscience.iop.org/info/page/openaccess, Introduction to
copyright and licensing, http://cms.iopscience.org/c3f526ba-8d6611e2-bd23-e50acbc9fd86/index.html)
Different types of Creative Commons licences
Creative Commons-Attribution:
CC BY
Attribution - Share Alike:
Attribution – Non-Commercial:
Attribution – Non-Derivative:
CC BY-SA
CC BY-NC
CC BY-ND
Other combinations include:
CC BY-SA-NC
CC BY-NC-ND
Source: creativecommons.org
Open access and copyright
copyright.iop.org
Where to read and use IOP journals
 http://iopscience.iop.org
Current Journals at IOPscience
For internal use only
IOPscience.iop.org
For internal use only
For internal use only
For internal use only
For internal use only
For internal use only
Journals
dept.
Where is IOP based?
 IOP has recently moved to new offices in
Bristol – Temple Circus
 This is a bright modern building and will allow
us to offer a good environment for our future
growth
 IOP currently employs about ~330 people, 7
in China
 IOP is based in Bristol, a city in the south west
of England
 It is famous for its Suspension Bridge, its
trading history and was the home town of
Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Paul Dirac
 It is a nice place to live!
英国物理学会北京代表处 -- IOP Beijing Office














2000年7月7日在北京正式成立, IOP Beijing Office
联络和促进中英两国在物理学方面的友好合作, 中国著名的大学和研
究机构,中国科技部、中国科协、国家基金委、中国物理学会,等
为中国物理学家向IOP期刊发表论文、作为审稿人或编委提供服务
为中国作者向IOP期刊投稿提供预审服务和免费修改英文服务
希望大家能够从中受益
Contact us:
英国物理学会北京代表处
北京市海淀区中关村南三街8号A楼512房间
（中国科学院物理研究所内）
北京603信箱37号分箱
邮编：北京 100190
Tel: (010) 82649679, Fax: (010) 82649678
Mobile: 13911326927
E-mail: mingfang.lu@iop.org
http://china.iop.org
为8 种期刊提供预审和免费英文修改, 方便中国作者投稿

(2012 Impact Factor)
1. Journal of Optics
(JOPt, 1.990)
2. Journal of Physics B: Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics (JPB, 2.031)
3. Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics
(JPD, 2.528)
4. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter
(JPCM, 2.355)
5. Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle Physics (JPG, 5.326)
6. Nanotechnology
(NANO, 3.842)
7. Semiconductor Science and Technology
(SST, 1.921)
8. Superconductor Science and Technology
(SUST, 2.758)

将扩展到包括所有Journal of Physics期刊: J Phys: A








All cited by SCI
IOP北京代表处提供稿件预审和免费英文修改服务




国内稿件质量不齐, 低质量论文对高水平论文带来不利
影响，造成多种浪费 — 时间、声誉
对稿件内容水平和写作把关，增加可读性
国际审稿时加速审稿过程, 增加可接受性，提高命中率
整体上提高学术声誉
被拒稿的国内论文主要存在的一些问题




科学水平不高，追求论文数量。
写作水平和英文水平欠缺，不能正确表达研究结果和对
其进行充分的讨论，难以达到学术交流目的，甚至使审
稿人难以相信你的研究结果 – 不一定是偏见。
内容不适合所投期刊，如JPCM强调基础凝聚态物理，
因此，属于材料科学的论文难以被发表
关于如何发表高水平研究论文，请参见：
http://china.iop.org
Suggestions 几点建议








做好研究工作是写好论文的基础
利用互联网和电子期刊全面检索本领域的研究进展
提早全面准备写论文，不要等到最后
采用标准格式建立参考文献的电子数据库如Excel文件方式，方
便以后检索和引用
在研究过程中尽可能采用标准方式记录研究数据，争取形成数据
—图表—引用的自动数据链
提早训练写作英语（或其他外语）科技论文，检索一些本领域的
范文论文，反复熟记其语言写作特点和语言用法，克服写作自己
论文时的语言障碍, 但切记不可照搬!
多与老师、同学或同事讨论，认真思考不同的观点
写好第一篇外语论文，不要急于投稿
Top Chinese Papers 2013
Questions?

Welcome to submit more quality
papers to IOP journals
Please contact:
mingfang.lu@iop.org
More at: China.iop.org, IOPscience.iop.org
GOOD LUCK!! 

Thank you!