The Review Process

Submitted manuscripts are initially screened for their suitability. Manuscripts that appear appropriate for publication in AIP Advances are sent to an expert referee for evaluation. We send some manuscripts to an additional referee for a second review. Referees’ identities are confidential. Based on the referee’s report, the editors decide whether to accept or reject the manuscript for publication. Editors might ask the author for revisions that the referee suggests. Authors must send their revised manuscript to the editorial office in a timely manner in order to retain the original date of receipt.

To avoid multiple revision cycles, we typically decide whether to accept or reject a manuscript after no more than two rounds of review. Authors may appeal an editor's decision to reject a manuscript by requesting that the editor reconsider. If the editor maintains the decision to reject the manuscript, the publisher of AIP Publishing will review an author’s subsequent appeals, if any. The publisher does not decide whether a manuscript should be accepted but rather assesses whether editors followed the proper procedures for reviewing the manuscript. If editors did not follow the proper procedures, we will review the manuscript again and decide whether to publish.

Criteria for Publication

To be accepted for publication in AIP Advances, manuscripts must meet the following criteria:

  • * The manuscript must present results of primary scientific research.
  • * The manuscript must present research in the physical sciences.
  • * The results presented in the manuscript must not be published elsewhere.
  • * The analysis must meet rigorous technical standards and be presented in sufficient detail.
  • * The conclusions must be supported by the data presented.
  • * The manuscript must be understandable and written in clear scientific English.

If the editors deem a manuscript inappropriate for the journal, they will reject it without refereeing. Language standard: It is the authors’ responsibility to ensure that manuscripts are written clearly. A manuscript can be rejected if the scientific meaning is unclear due to poor English. Manuscripts that do not meet AIP Advances’ language standard will be returned to the authors for rewrite before peer review, during the review process and/or if provisionally accepted pending language editing.

Because good science has no value unless it is clearly communicated, AIP Publishing recommends that authors use AIPP Author Services to improve the quality of your paper’s written English. Using this service ensures that your paper will be free of language deficiencies, so editors and reviewers will be able to fully understand your research during the review process. A native English-speaking subject matter expert of AIP Author Services will correct spelling, grammar and punctuation and verify the use and consistency of technical terms and content in your paper. Note that this is not a requirement or a guarantee of acceptance for review or publication. Although AIP Advances typically publishes primary scientific research, we will consider review articles on a case-by-case basis. Additional criteria that apply to review articles include balance, comprehensiveness, clarity, accuracy, and appropriateness of the topic. AIP Advancesdoes not accept submissions that contain extraordinary claims that contradict well-established physical law. Such claims require extraordinary efforts to verify, which we cannot provide.

Ethics and Responsibilities

AIP Advances is published as part of the charter of its publisher, AIP Publishing, to advance and distribute knowledge of the science of physics and its application to human welfare. It is essential that authors, reviewers, editors, and publishers conduct themselves with the highest level of professional ethics and standards. See our detailed Statement of Expectations. By submitting a manuscript to AIP Advances, authors implicitly confirm that their manuscripts meet the highest ethical standards.

Retraction and Correction Policies

AIP Publishing’s policy is based on best practices in academic publishing. We take seriously our responsibility to maintain the integrity and completeness of the scholarly record of our content. We place great importance on the authority of articles after we publish them. Authors may make changes to articles after they have been published online only under the circumstances outlined in AIP Publishing's Retraction and Correction Policies.