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Canadian Journal of Physics
Instructions to Authors
The Canadian Journal of Physics is an international, refereed, primary research journal that is available in paper and electronic form. It publishes reports representing significant contributions to physics. Reports may be submitted in English or in French for publication as an article, a research note, a tutorial, or a rapid communication. Research notes and rapid communications are papers of not more than eight journal pages including tables and figures. A rapid communication reports research of sufficient significance to merit rapid publication. A tutorial is an article whose particular significance is to elucidate or explain previously obtained results and has original research. Review articles are published by invitation only and not more than one such article may appear in any issue. Occasionally the Journal publishes a special issue on a theme chosen by a guest Editor. Anyone contemplating editing a supplement should seek the advice of the Editor at an early stage of consideration. The Journal does not make page charges. To facilitate publication, authors must check the symbols, abbreviations, and technical terms for accuracy, consistency, and readability and ensure that manuscripts and illustrations meet the Journal requirements outlined below. NRC Research Press maintains the right to preserve the technical quality of the Journal. Authors are requested to refer to a recent issue of the Journal for details of layout, especially for tables and reference lists. For general matters of style, authors may consult the American Institute of Physics Style Manual (available from the American Institute of Physics, 335 East 45th Street, New York, NY 10017, U.S.A., or at http://publish.aps.org/STYLE), but for specific regulations, these Instructions to Authors must be followed. Authors who do not have native fluency in English or French are encouraged to consult with a native English- or French-speaking colleague regarding language usage. Delays in publication can be avoided by adherence to the instructions below. Ethics General — The ethical standards expected of authors, referees, and editors are described in the NRC Research Press Publication Policy (published in the January 1996 issue of the Canadian Journal of Physics, on the Journal Web site at http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/cgi-bin/rp/rp2_cust_e?pubpolicy, or available upon request). Conflict of interest and disclosure — The Editor recognizes that authors and peer reviewers may have real or perceived conflicts of interest arising from intellectual, personal, or financial circumstances of their research. Submitted manuscripts should include full disclosure of funding sources for the research and the letter of transmission should include an explanation of any real or perceived conflicts of interest that may arise during the peer review process. Failure to disclose such conflicts may lead to refusal of a submitted manuscript. Photographs of people and photo manipulation — If a person pictured in a photo is identifiable, his or her permission is required to publish the photo. The person will be asked to sign a letter or form allowing NRC Research Press to publish the photo. Authors should be aware that the Journal considers digital images to be data. Hence, digital images submitted should contain the same data as the original image captured. Any manipulation using graphical software should be identified, including both the name of the software and the techniques used to enhance or change the graphic in any way. Such a disclaimer ensures that the methods are repeatable and ensures the scientific integrity of the work. The removal of artefacts or any (nonintegral) data held in the image is discouraged. The Manuscript Manuscripts may be prepared using LaTeX (or REVTeX). Authors are encouraged to use the CJP LaTeX style file nrc1.sty, which can be downloaded and installed from ftp://ftp.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/nrc/. A link to this web site, and other information for authors, including the Copyright Transfer Form, can be obtained by starting from the CJP web page http://cjp.nrc.ca and following the links indicated there. Manuscripts can also be prepared as WordPerfect or MS Word files. The manuscript will include, in the following order, the title page, the abstract, a brief introduction, main text, concluding section, acknowledgments, reference list, list of symbols, any appendices, tables, and figure captions (in numerical order). Use an italic font for material that is to be set in italics. Manuscripts that do not conform to this format may be returned to the author for correction before review. Spelling should follow that of Webster’s Third New International Dictionary or the Oxford English Dictionary. Authors are responsible for consistency in spelling. Symbols, units, and nomenclature should conform to international recommendations. SI units (Système international d’unités) should be used or SI equivalents should be given. This system is explained and other useful information is given in the Canadian Metric Practice Guide (2000) published by CSA International (178 Rexdale Blvd., Toronto, ON M9W 1A3, Canada, at http://www.csa-intl.org/onlinestore/GetCatalogItemDetails.asp?mat=000000000002414516). For practical reasons, some exceptions to SI units are allowed. Superscripts and subscripts must be legible and appropriately placed, and unusual and Greek characters must be identified clearly. The title page should contain only the title; the authors’ names; the institute and address (with postal code) at which the research was done; corresponding author’s address, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail address; any necessary footnotes; and the index classification of the paper according to the current Physics and Astronomy Classification Scheme (PACS)®. The Physics and Astronomy Classification Scheme, developed by the American Institute of Physics, is used with its permission by the Canadian Journal of Physics. Detailed listing is at http://publish.aps.org/PACS/. A one-paragraph abstract of 300 words or less is required for articles and tutorials; an abstract of less than 150 words should be provided for rapid communications and research notes. Authors who can submit abstracts in both fluent English and French are encouraged to do so. Titles and abstracts provide information for information-retrieval and alerting services, and should therefore be informative but brief. Authors should bear in mind that many colleagues will decide whether to read the article on the basis of the information presented in the abstract. Abstracts must not contain references but may include abbreviations and symbols only if they are generally familiar to physicists. An introduction explaining in precise terms the problem with which the article is concerned, the motivation for the work, and its relation to existing knowledge must constitute the first section of each article. A concluding section summarizing the contribution made to knowledge and explaining its significance must constitute the last section of the body of each article. Acknowledgments follow the body of the paper in a separate section. References should be verified by checking the original publications. In the bibliography, which follows the acknowledgments, references are numbered and listed in the order in which they are first cited in the text. Each reference must be cited in the text and designated therein by its unique key number typed on the line and in square brackets. In a reference to the periodical literature, initials precede the surnames of the authors, followed by the name of the periodical (abbreviated in the form used in CASSI, Chemical Abstracts Service, P.O. Box 3012, Columbus, OH 43210, U.S.A.), the volume number, initial page number, and year in parentheses. A very extensive list of journal abbreviations from both CASSI and the American Mathematical Society is available at http://publish.aps.org/STYLE/style_jabbr.html. If in doubt, authors should write the full name of the periodical. References to books, conference proceedings, theses, etc., should include the name(s) and initials of the author(s), the title of the publication, the name(s) and initials of the editor(s), if any, the name of the publisher, the city and year of publication, and the page or chapter cited. For examples of the appropriate format, see a recent issue of the Journal. References to e-print archives may also be included, along with the hard copy version if available. A manuscript known to be in press, with the name of the journal, book, or conference proceedings, may be used as a reference. Papers submitted but not yet accepted for publication should be denoted as unpublished as a footnote. Other forms of material may be denoted as a private communication as a footnote. Footnotes to material in the text should not be used unless they are unavoidable, but their use is encouraged in tables. Where used in the text, footnotes should be cited in the manuscript by superscript Arabic numbers (except in the tables, see below) and should be numbered serially beginning with any that appear on the title page. Each footnote should be placed on the manuscript page upon which the reference is made; footnotes should not be included in the list of references. Equations should be presented clearly; triple-spacing should be used if superscripts and (or) subscripts are involved. Superscripts and subscripts should be legible and carefully placed. Distinguish between lowercase l and the numeral one, and between capital O and the numeral zero. A letter or symbol should represent only one entity and be used consistently throughout the paper. Each variable must be defined in the text, or in a List of symbols to appear after the reference list. Variables representing vectors, matrices, vector matrices, and tensors must be clearly identified. Numbers identifying equations must be in parentheses and placed flush with the right margin. In numbering, no distinction is made between mathematical and chemical equations. Tables should be numbered in Arabic numerals in the order cited in the text and each should have a brief title. All information in the tables should be typewritten and double-spaced, except for mathematical or chemical equations, chemical structures, or a large number of complicated entries, which should be triple-spaced. Each table must be on a separate sheet and should not be more than three times the size of the final reproduction. Abbreviations may be used in the column headings with explanatory footnotes where necessary. Footnotes are indicated by lowercase italic superscript letters or by symbols (*, †, ‡, §, ||, ¶, #). Descriptive material not designated by a footnote may be placed under a table as a Note. Tables must not contain vertical or superfluous horizontal lines. Appendices — Figures and tables used in an appendix should be numbered sequentially but separately from those used in the main body of the paper, such as Fig. A1, Table A1, etc. Supplementary material — The National Research Council of Canada maintains a depository in which supplementary material may be placed, either at the request of the author or suggestion of the Editor. In addition, supplementary material can now be made available in its native file format on the journal Web site. It will be linked from the Web page of the associated article. Such material may include extensive tables of data, detailed calculations, and maps not essential for understanding and evaluating the paper. Such material must be clearly marked when the manuscript is submitted. Tables and figures should be numbered in sequence separate from those published with the paper (e.g., Fig. S1, Table S1). The supplemental material should be referred to by footnotes. Copies of material in the depository may be purchased from the Depository of Unpublished Data, CISTI, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6, Canada. Illustrations Figures, individually or in groups, should fit on one page after reduction. The page size is 14.4 x 21.2 cm (5.7 x 8.3 in). The figures (including halftones) must be numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals, and each one must be referred to in the text and must be self-explanatory. All terms, abbreviations, and symbols must correspond with those in the text. Only essential labelling should be used, with detailed information given in the caption. The same information should not be presented in both graphical and tabular form. Line drawings should be computer-generated graphics. All lines must be sufficiently thick (0.5 points minimum) to reproduce well, and all symbols, superscripts, subscripts, and decimal points must be in good proportion to the rest of the drawing and large enough to allow for any necessary reduction without loss of detail. Avoid small open symbols; these tend to fill in upon reproduction. The same font style and lettering sizes should be used for all figures of similar size in any one paper. Photographs should be continuous tone, of high quality, and with strong contrast. Only essential features should be shown. A photograph, or group of them, should be planned to fit into the area of either one or two columns of text with no further reduction. Electron micrographs or photomicrographs should include a scale bar directly on the print. The best results will be obtained if the authors match the contrast and density of all figures arranged as a single plate. Colour illustrations will be at the author’s expense. Further details on prices are available from Evelyn Kidd, Managing Editor, NRC Research Press (613-998-3789; fax: 613-952-7656; e-mail: evelyn.kidd@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca). NRC Research Press requires the submission of electronic illustration files. Upon acceptance of a manuscript, a hard copy of each colour illustration must be sent to Fran Flavelle, Publication Officer, Canadian Journal of Physics, NRC Research Press, Building M55, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6. The colour and quality of this copy must be representative of what is expected to be produced in print. When sending hard copies, please ensure that electronic files match the hard copies (i.e., figure number and figure content). See also instructions for electronic colour files below. Submission of noncontinuous (screened) photographs and scanned illustrations printed out on laser printers is not recommended as moirés develop; a moiré is a noticeable, unwanted pattern generated by rescanning or rescreening an illustration that already contains a dot pattern. Preparation of Electronic Illustration Files Authors must supply electronic graphic files of high-quality.The preferred graphic application of NRC Research Press is CorelDraw! For other applications that can be used, see the electronic graphics list at http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/cgi-bin/rp/rp2_prog_e?cjp_graphics_e.html. Figures may be sent as encapsulated PostScript (*.eps) files, with one figure per file. For LaTeX submissions this is the required format. All figures should be submitted at their final published size. For figures with several parts (e.g., a, b, c, d, etc.) created using the same software application, assemble them into one file rather than sending several files. Remember that the more complex your artwork becomes, the greater the possibility for problems at output time. Avoid complicated textures and shadings, especially in vector illustration programs; this increases the chance for a poor-quality final product. Bitmap (raster) files — Bitmaps are image files produced using a grid format in which each square (or pixel) is set to one level of black, colour or grey. A bitmap (rasterized) file is broken down into the number of pixels or picture elements per inch (ppi). Pixels per inch is sometimes referred to as dots per inch (dpi). The higher the resolution of an image, the larger the number of pixels contained within the rectangular grid. The proper resolution should be used when submitting bitmap artwork. The minimum requirements for resolution are 600 dpi for line art, 1200 dpi for finelines (line art with fine lines or shading), 300 dpi for halftones and colour, and 600 dpi for combinations (halftones with lettering outside the photo area). All colour files submitted must be as CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black). These colours are used in full-colour commercial printing. RGB graphics (red, green, and blue; colours specifically used to produce an image on a monitor) will not print correctly. Vector files — Vector files are image files produced using elements such as lines and shapes. Typically these files are used for line drawings. Bitmaps inside vector files — Bitmaps can be imported into vector/draw applications only for the purpose of adding and overlaying information, lines, text, etc. Bitmaps should not be resized, cropped, rotated, or otherwise manipulated after importing. How to submit Submission via the World Wide Web — Authors are strongly encouraged to submit manuscripts via OSPREY Online Submission and Peer Review system (http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/cjp/osprey). OSPREY is best viewed in Netscape 7.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher. Authors may register at any time on the site, but should register only once. During registration, authors choose a username/password. The security of manuscripts is protected by the username/password system. For technical support at any point during submission, contact Louis Lafleur (613-998-9432; louis.lafleur@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca) from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm EST. A user manual with full instructions is available on the Web site. Authors must submit at least a cover letter and manuscript; tables and figures may be included in the manuscript file, or may be uploaded separately. OSPREY accepts files in most common text (.pdf, .dvi, .doc, or .wpd) and graphics formats (see complete list of formats on the Web site). Research Press is not currently accepting Microsoft Word 12 documents (.docx extension). Please note that saving .docx documents to other formats (i.e., .doc, .rtf, or .txt) will likely lead to changes to or losses in formatting or other data. Authors saving .docx manuscipts to other formats are requested to check their manuscripts carefully before submission for any losses or other errors. When first submitting a manuscript for peer review, low-resolution versions of figures should be uploaded to limit file size. When submitting, authors should be working at a computer where all of the relevant files for their paper are available. Submission of a typical manuscript requires about 10 minutes, but upload time depends on the speed of the Internet connection. All correspondence about manuscripts submitted through OSPREY will be sent to the person listed as the corresponding author during submission. Correspondence is by e-mail. For revisions, the corresponding author will be contacted by e-mail and asked to submit a revision; the process is very similar to initial submission. For accepted manuscripts, the author will be contacted to advise him or her of acceptance, and to ask him or her to upload via OSPREY the final accepted manuscript and all associated files for tables, figures, and supplementary data. Text (including tables) should be provided in a word-processing format (TeX or LaTeX is preferable, but any form of WordPerfect or Microsoft Word is acceptable (IBM compatible or Macintosh)). The CJP style file for LaTeX is called nrc1.cls. It is available for download at the Web sites ftp.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/nrc/, ftp.dante.de/tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/nrc/, and ctan.tug.org/tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/nrc/. Authors are encouraged to use this in preparing their manuscripts. Once the manuscript is accepted, to ensure the highest possible quality reproduction and printing of figures, authors should (i) upload figure files separately from the manuscript, (ii) ensure that figure files are high resolution; (iii) ensure that figures are in their original file format (i.e., PhotoShop, Adobe Illustrator, Excel, CorelDraw, SigmaPlot) rather than embedded in a Word document or converted to a derived format (if figures are in a format that NRC Research Press does not accept, high-quality high-resolution PostScript or pdf files are acceptable); and (iv) ensure that they are uploading the most recent, correct versions of the files. (See the section Preparation of electronic illustration files.) Submission by e-mail — Manuscripts prepared using LaTeX, Microsoft Word, or WordPerfect may be sent as an attachment in the form of a .pdf, .doc, or .wpd file, together with separate attachments for each of the figures, to the CJP Editorial Office at canjphys@stfx.ca. Submission requirements — With each new submission, the corresponding author must include a covering letter and copyright release forms signed by all authors (see also Publication process section, Copyright transfer). Copyright forms can be either sent by fax or scanned and e-mailed. The covering letter must (i) state the type of paper being submitted (e.g., article, note, review, etc.) and the preferred subject category for listing the paper in the Table of Contents; (ii) include the full name and complete contact information (including e-mail address) for each co-author; (iii) warrant that the manuscript represents original work that is not being considered for publication, in whole or in part, in another journal, book, conference proceedings, or government publication with a substantial circulation; (iv) warrant that all previously published work cited in the manuscript has been fully acknowledged (see Publication process section, Permission to reproduce copyright material); (v) warrant that the manuscript is one of a kind, or part of a study or thesis from which other manuscripts may be generated; (vi) warrant that all of the authors have contributed substantially to the manuscript and approved the final submission; (vii) explain any real or perceived conflicts of interest (see Ethics section, Conflict of interest and disclosure); (viii) provide the names of colleagues who have reviewed the manuscript in the final stages; and (ix) list the names, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses of four to six persons who are qualified to act as referees. Editorial process Receipt of each manuscript is acknowledged by e-mail to the corresponding author within three working days. The manuscript is read and examined for conformity to these Instructions to Authors by the Editor(s). Failure to meet the criteria outlined may result in return of the manuscript for correction before evaluation. Correspondence — Authors should note that it is the strict policy of the Canadian Journal of Physics to correspond only with the authors through the designated corresponding author of a paper. The Editor regards a submitted manuscript as a confidential document and seeks to ensure that the authors retain control of the reports obtained during the evaluation process. Review — Authors are invited to suggest names with addresses of up to six referees whom they believe to be competent arms-length reviewers. (An arms-length reviewer cannot be a relative, a colleague in the same department, a former or current supervisor or student, or a recent research collaborator.) Referees suggested by the authors may or may not be used. It is not uncommon for authors to be requested to revise manuscripts in response to the referees’ comments. If the revisions are extensive the revised manuscript may be reviewed again. The Editor assigns management of the peer review process to an Associate Editor responsible for the subject area of the paper. However, the Editor will return unreviewed those manuscripts that do not fall within the Journal’s scope or character and those that exceed the Journal’s guidelines for prior publication. The Associate Editor selects a minimum of two reviewers selected for their knowledge of, and their experience in, the subject treated in the manuscript. Reviewers are invited, in confidence, to recommend on the suitability of the submission and provide comments for the authors and the Associate Editor. Authors are invited to suggest reviewers who are competent to examine their manuscript, but the Associate Editor is not limited to such suggestions. Reviewers are informed that they have received privileged documents for assessment of scientific merit and are expected to provide reasonable arguments to support their evaluations. The review process is expected to be complete within eight weeks, but conflicting recommendations and other unpredictable events may cause some delay. The final decision on acceptance or rejection is made by the Editor. After acceptance of a manuscript, if further information that seems to warrant investigation comes to light, the Editor and Associate Editors will regard it as an obligation to reconsider their decision. Publication process General — The Editorial Office checks all accepted manuscripts for conformation to the Instructions to Authors and to ensure that all necessary paperwork is present. Any areas that are identified as problematic will be addressed by the Editorial Office in consultation with the corresponding author. Once the Editorial Office has resolved any problems with the manuscript and the original signed Assignment of Copyright forms have been received from all authors, the manuscript is forwarded to NRC Research Press in Ottawa for publication. The papers are prepared for publication by a professional copy editor responsible for ensuring that the final printed work is consistent in form and style. NRC Research Press may make editorial changes as required, but will not make substantive changes in the content of a paper without consultation with the author and the Editor. Correspondence with NRC Research Press — Once the paper has been accepted, all correspondence should be with NRC Research Press, National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, ON KlA 0R6, Canada (fax: 613-952-7656; e-mail: pubs@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca; URL: http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca). Permission to reproduce copyright material — Whenever a manuscript contains material (tables, figures, charts, etc.) that has been previously published and, hence, is protected by copyright, it is the obligation of the author to secure written permission from the holder of the copyright to reproduce the material for both the print and electronic formats. These letters must accompany the submitted manuscript. Galley proofs — A galley proof, illustration proofs, the copy-edited manuscript, and a reprint order form are sent to the corresponding author. Galley proofs must be checked very carefully, as they will not be proofread by NRC Research Press, and must be returned within 48 hours of receipt. The proof stage is not the time to make extensive corrections, additions, or deletions, and the cost of changes introduced at the proof stage and deemed to be excessive will be charged to the author. Questions concerning galley proofs should be addressed to Fran Flavelle (613-993-5780; fax: 613-952-7656; e-mail: fran.flavelle@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca). Reprints — To order reprints, the completed order form must be returned with payment (cheque, credit card number, purchase order number, or journal voucher) together with the corrected proofs and manuscript, or in the case of a communication, as soon as possible. Orders submitted after the Journal has been printed are subject to considerably higher prices. The Journal does not provide free reprints, and reprints are not mailed until a purchase order number or payment is received. Copyright transfer — As soon as the article is published, the author is considered to have transferred all rights to the publisher. All authors are required to complete a copyright transfer form assigning all rights to NRC. Copyright transfer forms are available from the Editorial Office, in the first issue of the volume, or on the Web site of the journal (http://pubs.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/rp/rptemp/cjp_copyright_e.pdf). Permission to reprint material published in NRC journals — Requests for permission to reproduce or republish the paper, in whole or in part, should be sent to NRC Research Press, Roxanne Landriault (tel.: 613-990-2254; e-mail: roxanne.landriault@nrc-cnrc. gc.ca).
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