Editor-In-Chief Resources
Once source files are received by IEEE Publishing Operations, they are converted to an XML-tagged format, and an IEEE-style PDF is created. Articles are also edited at this point, according to the level of editing your journal elected to use (fully edited or moderately edited). Your IEEE Journals Production Manager (JPM) will be able to explain which model your journal uses.
Full and moderate editorial levels of service include:
Full editing also includes editing for grammar, punctuation, spelling, and style. Moderate editing includes an automated spell check.
Within five days for moderate editing and seven days for full editing after receipt of source files, an article proof, clearly watermarked as “IEEE proof,” is sent to the corresponding author, who then has 24–48 hours to review it and return comments to the JPM. A link sent to the author via email will direct the author to the IEEE Author Gateway, an author proof management system that keeps track of all articles in the production process. Authors will see information related to all of their journal and magazine articles here.
Authors can pay article processing charges (APCs) such as open access fees, charges for color printing of figures, and overlength page charges through IEEE’s instance of RightsLink. Open access fees are billed immediately post-acceptance during the copyright transfer/licensing process. Other charges such as color printing fees, voluntary page charges, and overlength page charges are billed once the article has completed the production process and is final. The corresponding author will receive an email from RightsLink with a link to a list of pending charges that may be paid by credit card, check, bank wire, or the author’s institution. Applicable taxes are removed for VAT-exempt institutions.
EiCs can advise authors who wish to purchase reprints of their articles to email reprints@ieee.org for further details. Payment for reprints is not automated through RightsLink at this time.
After the article’s source files are sent to IEEE for publication, the article will appear in the IEEE Xplore digital library as an early access article, made available in advance of final publication on the early access tab of a publication’s IEEE Xplore home page. Early access articles are fully citable from the moment they appear in IEEE Xplore, as they are published with a digital object identifier (DOI). When the final article is published, the early access version is removed from IEEE Xplore.
There are two types of early access articles:
Both types of early access articles are clearly labeled to indicate which type of article is offered:
Accepted manuscripts: “This article has been accepted for publication in a future issue of this journal, but has not been fully edited. Content may change prior to final publication. Citation information: [DOI information, publication title].”
Edited articles: “This article has been accepted for inclusion in a future issue of this journal. Content is final as presented, with the exception of pagination.”
Most IEEE journals publish accepted manuscripts in early access. Your JPM will be able to explain which early access model your journal uses.
An article is considered “published” when it first appears in the IEEE Xplore digital library. For most articles, publication occurs when the article appears as an early access article.
The status of a published article determines whether a post-publication change can be implemented on that article.
If the article is not in a stage where changes can be made, any changes must be addressed through the creation and publication of a correction (for author error) or erratum (for IEEE production error). Contact your JPM for assistance in publishing a correction or erratum.
More information about the IEEE author name change policy can be found here.
Once an article is posted in the IEEE Xplore digital library as an early access article, it is considered officially published by the IEEE. It is assigned a digital object identifier (DOI), registered with CrossRef, and is a part of the scholarly record. The article may be cited and included in the list of published content in an author’s ORCID record. Upon publication, the article is also sent to external abstracting and indexing services. As such, published articles cannot be removed from Xplore. However, circumstances may arise when a published article may need to be investigated for retraction.
A retraction is a published statement that indicates a correction to be noted by the reader. In cases where there are ethical infringements (e.g., multiple submission, plagiarism, fraudulent use of data) it may be appropriate to retract an article. The retracted article remains on IEEE Xplore but the retraction notice serves as an indicator that there is a problem and the article should not be considered for citation purposes.
The removal of an article is rarely possible. Examples of cases where removal may be considered include a duplicate copy of the same article or a direct threat of legal action. The removal of access to content on IEEE Xplore requires the review and approval of the Vice President—Publication Services and Products.
Section 8.1.11 of the IEEE Operations Manual outlines the steps an EiC can follow if there is a problem with an article post-publication, that may warrant retraction from IEEE Xplore. The process is briefly outlined below.
IEEE’s article sharing and posting policies vary depending on the stage of the article’s lifecycle.
* IEEE policy provides that authors are free to follow public access mandates to post accepted articles in funding agency repositories. When posting in a funding agency repository, the time from article publication on the IEEE Xplore digital library to availability of the article to the public through the repository (the “embargo period”) is 24 months. However, IEEE recognizes that posting requirements and embargo periods vary by funder, and IEEE authors may comply with requirements to deposit their accepted manuscripts in funding agency repositories where the embargo is less than 24 months.
For more information, see the PSPB Operations Manual.
IEEE promotes articles published on the IEEE Xplore digital library through active partnerships with abstracting and indexing (A&I) providers, including:
IEEE sends regular updates to all our A&I partners as new articles are uploaded into IEEE Xplore. However, IEEE does not control how long the A&I service takes to process the article. Authors are advised to allow 12 weeks from when their article first appears in IEEE Xplore before searching for the article in an A&I service. In the event an author is unable to find their article in an A&I service after 12 weeks have elapsed, the EiC should advise them to send the article DOI to discoveryservices@ieee.org for assistance. It is also important to realize that any new journal will not be included in A&I services. It can take several years to get your journal indexed by an abstracting and indexing service such as Web of Science or Scopus. Please contact discoveryservices@ieee.org for assistance in the indexing process.
IEEE Xplore is indexed by Google, enabling articles to appear in pertinent Google search results.
If an author identifies the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) as a source of funding for an article, the article will be automatically deposited to PubMed Central (PMC) on the author’s behalf to comply with funder requirements.
