MATERIALS CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS

Including Materials Science Communications

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK

TABLE OF CONTENTS XXX

. .

• Description p.1
• Audience p.1
• Impact Factor p.1
• Abstracting and Indexing p.2
• Editorial Board p.2
• Guide for Authors p.5
ISSN: 0254-0584

DESCRIPTION
.

Materials Chemistry and Physics is devoted to short communications, full-length research papers
and feature articles on interrelationships among structure, properties, processing and performance
of materials. The Editors welcome manuscripts on all subjects of metallurgy, engineering and
functional ceramics, specialty polymers, composites, low D materials, surface modification
and coatings with emphasis on, but not limited to, energy materials, green materials,
optoelectronic materials, electronic, magnetic and semiconductor materials, biomaterials,
sustainable materials, degradation and reliability, and modelling of materials.

Keywords: metallurgy, ceramics, polymers, composites, low D materials, nanomaterials,

functional materials, high entropy materials, surface, interface, coating, thin film,
porous materials, soft materials, energy materials, fuel cell, solar cell, photovoltaic,
supercapacitor, battery, electrode materials, green materials, optoelectronic materials,
electronic materials, magnetic material, multiferroic materials, electromagnetic materials,
semiconductor materials, biomaterial, sustainable materials, materials degradation,
corrosion, oxidation, reliability, materials modelling.

Please see our Guide for Authors for information on article submission. If you require any further
information or help, please visit our Support Center

AUDIENCE
.

Scientists and researchers working in the field of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials
Chemists

IMPACT FACTOR
.

2021: 4.778 © Clarivate Analytics Journal Citation Reports 2022

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 1

ABSTRACTING AND INDEXING
.

Cambridge Scientific Abstracts

Physics Abstracts
Research Alert
Chemical Abstracts
Current Contents
Current Titles in Electrochemistry
Engineering Index
FIZ Karlsruhe
Glass Technology Abstracts
Metal Finishing Abstracts
Metals Abstracts
Paint Titles
Physikalische Berichte
Science Citation Index
World Surface Coatings Abstracts
American Ceramic Society
Scopus
Abstracts of Sci-Tech Journals of ROC
INSPEC

EDITORIAL BOARD
.

Editor-in-Chief
Jenq-Gong Duh, National Tsing-Hua University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 101, Sec.
2, Kuang-Fu Road, 30013, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Areas of expertise: Surface Modification and Multi-functional Coating; Lead-free Solder, and Solder;
Joint Reliability in Microelectronic Packaging ; Electrode Materials for Li-Battery; Electron Microscopy
and X-ray Microanalysis; Bio-Materials and Bio-Mimetic Materials; Nano-Mechanical Evaluation.
Executive Editor
Sammy Lap Ip Chan, UNSW Sydney School of Materials Science and Engineering, E10 Building, Kensington,
Sydney, 2052, New South Wales, Australia
Areas of expertise: Energy materials, hydrogen storage, nano-carbonaceous materials, metal matrix
composites, corrosion and corrosion control.
Managing Editors
Yung-Yuan Chen, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Ghazaleh Bahman Rokh, UNSW Sydney School of Materials Science and Engineering, Sydney, New South
Wales, Australia
Editors
Mario Aparicio, Institute of Ceramics and Glass, Madrid, Spain
materials, batteries, fuel cell, corrosion protection, carbon dioxide electro-reduction
Jan-Hendrik Carroll-Poehls, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
Condensed Matter
Kyeongjae (KJ) Cho, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas, United States of America
Material design, Density functional theory, Battery, Fuel cell, Oxide semiconductor, Atomic layer
deposition, Chemical catalyst
Yasufumi Fujiwara, Osaka University, Suita, Japan
Atomic-level controlled growth of III-V semiconductors, Material science of electronic materials,
Rare-earth-doped photonic devices
Alessandro Martucci, University of Padua, Padova, Italy
Materials Science Engineering, thin films, Nanomaterials, Optical properties, Gas sensor, Glass and
ceramics
Sudha Mokkapati, Monash University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Clayton, Victoria,
Australia
Semiconductors, sensors, 2D materials, solar cells, lasers
Philip Nakashima, Monash University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Clayton, Victoria,
Australia

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 2

transmission electron microscopy; electron diffraction; quantum crystallography; electron
crystallography; metals physics; strongly correlated electron materials; condensed matter physics;
plasmonics and electron dynamics in metals; electron energy loss spectroscopy; detector
characterisation; digital image restoration, quantification and quality control; electron scattering
software development and programming; computational physics and modelling; new pedagogy in
teaching crystallography
Jrjeng Ruan, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
Organic/inorganic hybrid materials, Optoelectrical responses, Molecular organization, Phase
transition, Polymer science, dielectric/piezoelectric materials
Jenn-Ming Song, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
Advanced interconnect materials; Electronic packaging; Synthesis and applications of nanomaterials;
Phase transformation and mechanical behavior of advanced materials at bulk and small length scales
Lia Stanciu, Purdue University School of Materials Engineering, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States of
America
Biomaterials; Biosensors; Chemical Sensors; Biocatalysis; Ceramics Processing; Li-ion Batteries; 2-
D Materials; Transmission Electron Microscopy; Surface Chemistry; Fuel Cells
An-Chung Su, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
polymer composites, blends, and solutions; polymer crystallization; nanomaterials; small/wide-
angle X-ray/neutron scattering; molecular simulation; phase transformation in soft matter
Advisory Board
Mark Aindow, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, United States of America
Electron Microscopy, Metals and Alloys, Microstructure, Nanostructured Materials, Thin Films
and Coatings.
Wenwu Cao, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
Ferroelectric, Piezoelectric, Ultrasound, Transducers, Sonodynamic therapy
Siu-Wai Chan, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America
Nanocrytals, Grain boundaries, Thin Films and Superconductors, Interfaces and Surfaces
Edward Yi Chang, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Nikhilesh Chawla, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America
mechanical behavior, microstructural characterization, Pb-free solder alloys, composite materials,
4D materials science, x-ray tomography, nanoindentation.
Lih-Juann Chen, National Tsing-Hua University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Hsinchu,
Taiwan
San-Yuan Chen, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Leon Cheng, Defence Research and Development Canada Toronto Research Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Materials Science
Deborah Chung, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States of America
Composite, Carbon fiber, Cement, Smart materials, Structural materials
Amy Clarke, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, United States of America
Uwe Erb, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Alexander Gloter, Paris-Saclay University, Gif sur Yvette, France
Carol Handwerker, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States of America
Jacob Chih-Ching Huang, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Jow‐Lay Huang, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
Herbert Ipser, University of Vienna Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Wien, Austria
Phase diagrams; Thermodynamic properties; Intermetallics and their properties; Inborganic
Compounds; Lead-free Soldering
Robert Kao, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
Diffusion, Bonding, Phase equilibrium, Solders, Power electronics.
Jonathan Knowles, University College London, London, United Kingdom
Biomaterials
Chih-Huang Lai, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Spintronics, Magnetic Films, Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells, Thin film solar cells.
Nyung Lee, Seoul National University, Gwanak-gu, South Korea
Kwang-Lung Lin, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
Dickon H. L. Ng, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Faculty of Science, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Photocatalysis; Biomorphic materials; Supercapacitors; Lithium-ion batteries; Water treatments.
André Phillion, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Metal alloy solidification; Casting and welding; Materials process modelling; Structure-processing
relationships; Metallurgy; 3D materials science; X-ray tomography; High temperature mechanics;
Thermal analysis
Bernard Raveau, University Hospital Centre Caen, Caen, France

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 3

Crystal chemistry (synthesis, structure electrron microscoy); Magnetic oxides; Multiferroics;
Thermoelectrics.
Emanuele Rimini, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
Angus Rockett, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, United States of America
Photovoltaics, Thin films, Surface science, Electronic materials.
Harry Ruda, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Katsuaki Suganuma, SANKEN, Ibaraki-shi, Japan
Hetero interface; Microstructure; Joining; Interface reaction
Ayodhya Nath Tiwari, Empa Laboratory for Thin Films and Photovoltaics, Dübendorf, Switzerland
Kung-Hwa Wei, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
Conjugated polymers; Organic photovoltaics; Two-dimensional materials; Graphene; Nanocomposite.

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 4

GUIDE FOR AUTHORS
.

Your Paper Your Way

We now differentiate between the requirements for new and revised submissions. You may choose to
submit your manuscript as a single Word or PDF file to be used in the refereeing process. Only when
your paper is at the revision stage, will you be requested to put your paper in to a 'correct format'
for acceptance and provide the items required for the publication of your article.
To find out more, please visit the Preparation section below.

INTRODUCTION
Types of paper
Types of paper Full Length Article: unpublished original work with thorough investigations Feature
Articles: invited reviews providing an in-depth overview on an area interested to the materials
research community Short Communications of novel research findings which are worthy of rapid
publication
Contributions are accepted on the understanding that the authors have obtained the necessary
authority for publication.
Page charges
This journal has no page charges.
Submission checklist
You can use this list to carry out a final check of your submission before you send it to the journal for
review. Please check the relevant section in this Guide for Authors for more details.

Ensure that the following items are present:

One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details:
• E-mail address
• Full postal address

All necessary files have been uploaded:

Manuscript:
• Include keywords
• All figures (include relevant captions)
• All tables (including titles, description, footnotes)
• Ensure all figure and table citations in the text match the files provided
• Indicate clearly if color should be used for any figures in print
Graphical Abstracts / Highlights files (where applicable)
Supplemental files (where applicable)

Further considerations
• Manuscript has been 'spell checked' and 'grammar checked'
• All references mentioned in the Reference List are cited in the text, and vice versa
• Permission has been obtained for use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the
Internet)
• A competing interests statement is provided, even if the authors have no competing interests to
declare
• Journal policies detailed in this guide have been reviewed
• Referee suggestions and contact details provided, based on journal requirements

For further information, visit our Support Center.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Ethics in publishing
Please see our information on Ethics in publishing.
Declaration of competing interest
Corresponding authors, on behalf of all the authors of a submission, must disclose any financial
and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence
(bias) their work. Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancies,

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stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or
other funding. All authors, including those without competing interests to declare, should provide
the relevant information to the corresponding author (which, where relevant, may specify they have
nothing to declare). Corresponding authors should then use this tool to create a shared statement
and upload to the submission system at the Attach Files step. Please do not convert the .docx
template to another file type. Author signatures are not required.
Declaration of generative AI in scientific writing
The below guidance only refers to the writing process, and not to the use of AI tools to analyse and
draw insights from data as part of the research process.

Where authors use generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies in the writing
process, authors should only use these technologies to improve readability and language. Applying the
technology should be done with human oversight and control, and authors should carefully review and
edit the result, as AI can generate authoritative-sounding output that can be incorrect, incomplete or
biased. AI and AI-assisted technologies should not be listed as an author or co-author, or be cited as
an author. Authorship implies responsibilities and tasks that can only be attributed to and performed
by humans, as outlined in Elsevier’s AI policy for authors.

Authors should disclose in their manuscript the use of AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing
process by following the instructions below. A statement will appear in the published work. Please
note that authors are ultimately responsible and accountable for the contents of the work.

Disclosure instructions
Authors must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process by
adding a statement at the end of their manuscript in the core manuscript file, before the References
list. The statement should be placed in a new section entitled ‘Declaration of Generative AI and AI-
assisted technologies in the writing process’.

Statement: During the preparation of this work the author(s) used [NAME TOOL / SERVICE] in order
to [REASON]. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed
and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication.

This declaration does not apply to the use of basic tools for checking grammar, spelling, references
etc. If there is nothing to disclose, there is no need to add a statement.
Submission declaration and verification
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in
the form of an abstract, a published lecture or academic thesis, see 'Multiple, redundant or concurrent
publication' for more information), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that
its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where
the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in
English or in any other language, including electronically without the written consent of the copyright-
holder. To verify compliance, your article may be checked by Crossref Similarity Check and other
originality or duplicate checking software.
Preprints
Please note that preprints can be shared anywhere at any time, in line with Elsevier's sharing policy.
Sharing your preprints e.g. on a preprint server will not count as prior publication (see 'Multiple,
redundant or concurrent publication' for more information).
Preprint posting on SSRN
In support of Open Science, this journal offers its authors a free preprint posting service. Preprints
provide early registration and dissemination of your research, which facilitates early citations and
collaboration.

During submission to Editorial Manager, you can choose to release your manuscript publicly as a
preprint on the preprint server SSRN once it enters peer-review with the journal. Your choice will have
no effect on the editorial process or outcome with the journal. Please note that the corresponding
author is expected to seek approval from all co-authors before agreeing to release the manuscript
publicly on SSRN.

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You will be notified via email when your preprint is posted online and a Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
is assigned. Your preprint will remain globally available free to read whether the journal accepts or
rejects your manuscript.

For more information about posting to SSRN, please consult the SSRN Terms of Use and FAQs.
Use of inclusive language
Inclusive language acknowledges diversity, conveys respect to all people, is sensitive to differences,
and promotes equal opportunities. Content should make no assumptions about the beliefs or
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gender neutrality by using plural nouns ("clinicians, patients/clients") as default/wherever possible
to avoid using "he, she," or "he/she." We recommend avoiding the use of descriptors that refer
to personal attributes such as age, gender, race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, disability or
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to avoid offensive or exclusionary terms such as "master", "slave", "blacklist" and "whitelist". We
suggest using alternatives that are more appropriate and (self-) explanatory such as "primary",
"secondary", "blocklist" and "allowlist". These guidelines are meant as a point of reference to help
identify appropriate language but are by no means exhaustive or definitive.
Reporting sex- and gender-based analyses
Reporting guidance
For research involving or pertaining to humans, animals or eukaryotic cells, investigators should
integrate sex and gender-based analyses (SGBA) into their research design according to funder/
sponsor requirements and best practices within a field. Authors should address the sex and/or gender
dimensions of their research in their article. In cases where they cannot, they should discuss this
as a limitation to their research's generalizability. Importantly, authors should explicitly state what
definitions of sex and/or gender they are applying to enhance the precision, rigor and reproducibility
of their research and to avoid ambiguity or conflation of terms and the constructs to which they
refer (see Definitions section below). Authors can refer to the Sex and Gender Equity in Research
(SAGER) guidelines and the SAGER guidelines checklist. These offer systematic approaches to the use
and editorial review of sex and gender information in study design, data analysis, outcome reporting
and research interpretation - however, please note there is no single, universally agreed-upon set of
guidelines for defining sex and gender.

Definitions
Sex generally refers to a set of biological attributes that are associated with physical and physiological
features (e.g., chromosomal genotype, hormonal levels, internal and external anatomy). A binary sex
categorization (male/female) is usually designated at birth ("sex assigned at birth"), most often based
solely on the visible external anatomy of a newborn. Gender generally refers to socially constructed
roles, behaviors, and identities of women, men and gender-diverse people that occur in a historical
and cultural context and may vary across societies and over time. Gender influences how people view
themselves and each other, how they behave and interact and how power is distributed in society. Sex
and gender are often incorrectly portrayed as binary (female/male or woman/man) and unchanging
whereas these constructs actually exist along a spectrum and include additional sex categorizations
and gender identities such as people who are intersex/have differences of sex development (DSD) or
identify as non-binary. Moreover, the terms "sex" and "gender" can be ambiguous—thus it is important
for authors to define the manner in which they are used. In addition to this definition guidance and
the SAGER guidelines, the resources on this page offer further insight around sex and gender in
research studies.
Author contributions
For transparency, we encourage authors to submit an author statement file outlining their individual
contributions to the paper using the relevant CRediT roles: Conceptualization; Data curation;
Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Resources;
Software; Supervision; Validation; Visualization; Roles/Writing - original draft; Writing - review &
editing. Authorship statements should be formatted with the names of authors first and CRediT role(s)
following. More details and an example.

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Article transfer service
This journal uses the Elsevier Article Transfer Service to find the best home for your manuscript. This
means that if an editor feels your manuscript is more suitable for an alternative journal, you might
be asked to consider transferring the manuscript to such a journal. The recommendation might be
provided by a Journal Editor, a dedicated Scientific Managing Editor, a tool assisted recommendation,
or a combination. If you agree, your manuscript will be transferred, though you will have the
opportunity to make changes to the manuscript before the submission is complete. Please note that
your manuscript will be independently reviewed by the new journal. More information.
Copyright
Upon acceptance of an article, authors will be asked to complete a 'Journal Publishing Agreement' (see
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Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles including abstracts for internal
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'License Agreement' (more information). Permitted third party reuse of gold open access articles is
determined by the author's choice of user license.

Author rights
As an author you (or your employer or institution) have certain rights to reuse your work. More
information.
Elsevier supports responsible sharing
Find out how you can share your research published in Elsevier journals.
Role of the funding source
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to state this.
Open access
Please visit our Open Access page for more information.
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researchers throughout their research journey. The "Learn" environment at Researcher Academy
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the process of writing for research and going through peer review. Feel free to use these free resources
to improve your submission and navigate the publication process with ease.
Language (usage and editing services)
Please write your text in good English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of
these). Authors who feel their English language manuscript may require editing to eliminate possible
grammatical or spelling errors and to conform to correct scientific English may wish to use the English
Language Editing service available from Elsevier's Author Services.
Submission
Our online submission system guides you stepwise through the process of entering your article
details and uploading your files. The system converts your article files to a single PDF file used in
the peer-review process. Editable files (e.g., Word, LaTeX) are required to typeset your article for
final publication. All correspondence, including notification of the Editor's decision and requests for
revision, is sent by e-mail.

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Submit your article
Please submit your article via https://www.editorialmanager.com/MATCHEMPHYS/default.aspx.
Suggesting reviewers
Please submit the names and institutional e-mail addresses of several potential reviewers.

You should not suggest reviewers who are colleagues, or who have co-authored or collaborated with
you during the last three years. Editors do not invite reviewers who have potential competing interests
with the authors. Further, in order to provide a broad and balanced assessment of the work, and ensure
scientific rigor, please suggest diverse candidate reviewers who are located in different countries/
regions from the author group. Also consider other diversity attributes e.g. gender, race and ethnicity,
career stage, etc. Finally, you should not include existing members of the journal's editorial team,
of whom the journal are already aware.

Note: the editor decides whether or not to invite your suggested reviewers.

PREPARATION
Queries
For questions about the editorial process (including the status of manuscripts under review) or for
technical support on submissions, please visit our Support Center.
NEW SUBMISSIONS
Submission to this journal proceeds totally online and you will be guided stepwise through the creation
and uploading of your files. The system automatically converts your files to a single PDF file, which
is used in the peer-review process.
As part of the Your Paper Your Way service, you may choose to submit your manuscript as a single file
to be used in the refereeing process. This can be a PDF file or a Word document, in any format or lay-
out that can be used by referees to evaluate your manuscript. It should contain high enough quality
figures for refereeing. If you prefer to do so, you may still provide all or some of the source files at
the initial submission. Please note that individual figure files larger than 10 MB must be uploaded
separately.
Short Communication
A rapid brief publication of new novel findings on all material aspects covered by the scope of this
journal. The communication is expected to share with communities the comprehension in materials
science, high impact contributions to materials composition, function and theory. It should not be
simply a straight experimental report. The manuscripts should be concise and not longer than six
printed pages with limit in total to 5 figures and tables, equivalent to 4,000 words.
References
There are no strict requirements on reference formatting at submission. References can be in any
style or format as long as the style is consistent. Where applicable, author(s) name(s), journal title/
book title, chapter title/article title, year of publication, volume number/book chapter and the article
number or pagination must be present. Use of DOI is highly encouraged. The reference style used by
the journal will be applied to the accepted article by Elsevier at the proof stage. Note that missing
data will be highlighted at proof stage for the author to correct.
Formatting requirements
There are no strict formatting requirements but all manuscripts must contain the essential elements
needed to convey your manuscript, for example Abstract, Keywords, Introduction, Materials and
Methods, Results, Conclusions, Artwork and Tables with Captions.
If your article includes any Videos and/or other Supplementary material, this should be included in
your initial submission for peer review purposes.
Divide the article into clearly defined sections.
Figures and tables embedded in text
Please ensure the figures and the tables included in the single file are placed next to the relevant text
in the manuscript, rather than at the bottom or the top of the file. The corresponding caption should
be placed directly below the figure or table.
Peer review
This journal operates a single anonymized review process. All contributions will be initially assessed by
the editor for suitability for the journal. Papers deemed suitable are then typically sent to a minimum of
two independent expert reviewers to assess the scientific quality of the paper. The Editor is responsible

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for the final decision regarding acceptance or rejection of articles. The Editor's decision is final. Editors
are not involved in decisions about papers which they have written themselves or have been written
by family members or colleagues or which relate to products or services in which the editor has an
interest. Any such submission is subject to all of the journal's usual procedures, with peer review
handled independently of the relevant editor and their research groups. More information on types
of peer review.
REVISED SUBMISSIONS
Use of word processing software
Regardless of the file format of the original submission, at revision you must provide us with an
editable file of the entire article. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible. Most formatting
codes will be removed and replaced on processing the article. The electronic text should be prepared
in a way very similar to that of conventional manuscripts (see also the Guide to Publishing with
Elsevier). See also the section on Electronic artwork.
To avoid unnecessary errors you are strongly advised to use the 'spell-check' and 'grammar-check'
functions of your word processor.
LaTeX
You are recommended to use the latest Elsevier article class to prepare your manuscript and BibTeX
to generate your bibliography.
Our Guidelines has full details.
Article structure
Subdivision - numbered sections
Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered
1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ...), 1.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this
numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text'. Any subsection may be
given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.
Introduction
State the objectives of the work and provide an adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature
survey or a summary of the results.
Material and methods
Provide sufficient details to allow the work to be reproduced by an independent researcher. Methods
that are already published should be summarized, and indicated by a reference. If quoting directly
from a previously published method, use quotation marks and also cite the source. Any modifications
to existing methods should also be described.
Experimental
Provide sufficient details to allow the work to be reproduced by an independent researcher. Methods
that are already published should be summarized, and indicated by a reference. If quoting directly
from a previously published method, use quotation marks and also cite the source. Any modifications
to existing methods should also be described.
Results
Results should be clear and concise.
Discussion
This should explore the significance of the results of the work, not repeat them. A combined Results
and Discussion section is often appropriate. Avoid extensive citations and discussion of published
literature.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the study may be presented in a short Conclusions section, which may stand
alone or form a subsection of a Discussion or Results and Discussion section.
Essential title page information
• Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid
abbreviations and formulae where possible.
• Author names and affiliations. Please clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s)
of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. You can add your name between
parentheses in your own script behind the English transliteration. Present the authors' affiliation
addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-

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case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address.
Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name and, if available, the
e-mail address of each author.
• Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing
and publication, also post-publication. This responsibility includes answering any future queries about
Methodology and Materials. Ensure that the e-mail address is given and that contact details
are kept up to date by the corresponding author.
• Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was
done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as
a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be
retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.
Highlights
Highlights are mandatory for this journal as they help increase the discoverability of your article via
search engines. They consist of a short collection of bullet points that capture the novel results of
your research as well as new methods that were used during the study (if any). Please have a look
at the examples here: example Highlights.

Highlights should be submitted in a separate editable file in the online submission system. Please
use 'Highlights' in the file name and include 3 to 5 bullet points (maximum 85 characters, including
spaces, per bullet point).
Abstract
A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the
research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from
the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if
essential, then cite the author(s) and year(s). Also, non-standard or uncommon abbreviations should
be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.
Keywords
A minimum 3 and maximum of 5 keywords should be indicated below the abstract to describe the
content of the manuscript.
Abbreviations
Define abbreviations that are not standard in this field in a footnote to be placed on the first page
of the article. Such abbreviations that are unavoidable in the abstract must be defined at their first
mention there, as well as in the footnote. Ensure consistency of abbreviations throughout the article.
Acknowledgements
Collate acknowledgements in a separate section at the end of the article before the references and do
not, therefore, include them on the title page, as a footnote to the title or otherwise. List here those
individuals who provided help during the research (e.g., providing language help, writing assistance
or proof reading the article, etc.).
Formatting of funding sources
List funding sources in this standard way to facilitate compliance to funder's requirements:

Funding: This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [grant numbers xxxx, yyyy];
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA [grant number zzzz]; and the United States Institutes
of Peace [grant number aaaa].

It is not necessary to include detailed descriptions on the program or type of grants and awards. When
funding is from a block grant or other resources available to a university, college, or other research
institution, submit the name of the institute or organization that provided the funding.

If no funding has been provided for the research, it is recommended to include the following sentence:

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or
not-for-profit sectors.
Units
Follow internationally accepted rules and conventions: use the international system of units (SI). If
other units are mentioned, please give their equivalent in SI.

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Math formulae
Please submit math equations as editable text and not as images. Present simple formulae in
line with normal text where possible and use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line for small
fractional terms, e.g., X/Y. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Powers of e are often
more conveniently denoted by exp. Number consecutively any equations that have to be displayed
separately from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).
Footnotes
Footnotes should be used sparingly. Number them consecutively throughout the article. Many word
processors build footnotes into the text, and this feature may be used. Should this not be the case,
indicate the position of footnotes in the text and present the footnotes themselves separately at the
end of the article.
Artwork
Electronic artwork
General points
• Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork.
• Preferred fonts: Arial (or Helvetica), Times New Roman (or Times), Symbol, Courier.
• Number the illustrations according to their sequence in the text.
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files.
• Indicate per figure if it is a single, 1.5 or 2-column fitting image.
• For Word submissions only, you may still provide figures and their captions, and tables within a
single file at the revision stage.
• Please note that individual figure files larger than 10 MB must be provided in separate source files.

A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available.

You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.
Formats
Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalized, please 'save as' or
convert the images to one of the following formats (note the resolution requirements for line drawings,
halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below):
EPS (or PDF): Vector drawings. Embed the font or save the text as 'graphics'.
TIFF (or JPG): Color or grayscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
TIFF (or JPG): Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
TIFF (or JPG): Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (color or grayscale): a minimum of 500 dpi
is required.
Please do not:
• Supply files that are optimized for screen use (e.g., GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low.
• Supply files that are too low in resolution.
• Submit graphics that are disproportionately large for the content.
Color artwork
Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF (or JPEG), EPS (or PDF), or
MS Office files) and with the correct resolution. If, together with your accepted article, you submit
usable color figures then Elsevier will ensure, at no additional charge, that these figures will appear
in color online (e.g., ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether or not these illustrations
are reproduced in color in the printed version. For color reproduction in print, you will receive
information regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. Please
indicate your preference for color: in print or online only. Further information on the preparation of
electronic artwork.
Figure captions
Ensure that each illustration has a caption. A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure
itself) and a description of the illustration. Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum but
explain all symbols and abbreviations used.
Tables
Please submit tables as editable text and not as images. Tables can be placed either next to the
relevant text in the article, or on separate page(s) at the end. Number tables consecutively in
accordance with their appearance in the text and place any table notes below the table body. Be
sparing in the use of tables and ensure that the data presented in them do not duplicate results
described elsewhere in the article. Please avoid using vertical rules and shading in table cells.

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 12

References
Citation in text
Please ensure that every reference cited in the text is also present in the reference list (and vice
versa). Any references cited in the abstract must be given in full. Unpublished results and personal
communications are not recommended in the reference list, but may be mentioned in the text. If these
references are included in the reference list they should follow the standard reference style of the
journal and should include a substitution of the publication date with either 'Unpublished results' or
'Personal communication'. Citation of a reference as 'in press' implies that the item has been accepted
for publication.
Web references
As a minimum, the full URL should be given and the date when the reference was last accessed. Any
further information, if known (DOI, author names, dates, reference to a source publication, etc.),
should also be given. Web references can be listed separately (e.g., after the reference list) under a
different heading if desired, or can be included in the reference list.
Data references
This journal encourages you to cite underlying or relevant datasets in your manuscript by citing them
in your text and including a data reference in your Reference List. Data references should include the
following elements: author name(s), dataset title, data repository, version (where available), year,
and global persistent identifier. Add [dataset] immediately before the reference so we can properly
identify it as a data reference. The [dataset] identifier will not appear in your published article.
Reference to software
We recommend that software (including computational code, scripts, models, notebooks and libraries)
should be cited in the same way as other sources of information to support proper attribution and
credit, reproducibility, collaboration and reuse, and encourage building on the work of others to further
research. To facilitate this, useful information is provided in this article on the essentials of software
citation by FORCE 11, of which Elsevier is a member. A reference to software should always include
the following elements: creator(s) e.g. the authors or project that developed the software, software
title, software repository, version (where available), year, and global persistent identifier.
Preprint references
Where a preprint has subsequently become available as a peer-reviewed publication, the formal
publication should be used as the reference. If there are preprints that are central to your work or that
cover crucial developments in the topic, but are not yet formally published, these may be referenced.
Preprints should be clearly marked as such, for example by including the word preprint, or the name
of the preprint server, as part of the reference. The preprint DOI should also be provided.
References in a special issue
Please ensure that the words 'this issue' are added to any references in the list (and any citations in
the text) to other articles in the same Special Issue.
Reference management software
Most Elsevier journals have their reference template available in many of the most popular reference
management software products. These include all products that support Citation Style Language
styles, such as Mendeley. Using citation plug-ins from these products, authors only need to select
the appropriate journal template when preparing their article, after which citations and bibliographies
will be automatically formatted in the journal's style. If no template is yet available for this journal,
please follow the format of the sample references and citations as shown in this Guide. If you use
reference management software, please ensure that you remove all field codes before submitting
the electronic manuscript. More information on how to remove field codes from different reference
management software.
Reference formatting
There are no strict requirements on reference formatting at submission. References can be in any
style or format as long as the style is consistent. Where applicable, author(s) name(s), journal title/
book title, chapter title/article title, year of publication, volume number/book chapter and the article
number or pagination must be present. Use of DOI is highly encouraged. The reference style used by
the journal will be applied to the accepted article by Elsevier at the proof stage. Note that missing data
will be highlighted at proof stage for the author to correct. If you do wish to format the references
yourself they should be arranged according to the following examples:

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Reference style
Text: Indicate references by number(s) in square brackets in line with the text. The actual authors
can be referred to, but the reference number(s) must always be given.
Example: '..... as demonstrated [3,6]. Barnaby and Jones [8] obtained a different result ....'
List: Number the references (numbers in square brackets) in the list in the order in which they appear
in the text.
Examples:
Reference to a journal publication:
[1] J. van der Geer, J.A.J. Hanraads, R.A. Lupton, The art of writing a scientific article, J. Sci. Commun.
163 (2010) 51–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.Sc.2010.00372.
Reference to a journal publication with an article number:
[2] J. van der Geer, J.A.J. Hanraads, R.A. Lupton, 2018. The art of writing a scientific article. Heliyon.
19, e00205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.e00205.
Reference to a book:
[3] W. Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, fourth ed., Longman, New York, 2000.
Reference to a chapter in an edited book:
[4] G.R. Mettam, L.B. Adams, How to prepare an electronic version of your article, in: B.S. Jones, R.Z.
Smith (Eds.), Introduction to the Electronic Age, E-Publishing Inc., New York, 2009, pp. 281–304.
Reference to a website:
[5] Cancer Research UK, Cancer statistics reports for the UK. http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/
aboutcancer/statistics/cancerstatsreport/, 2003 (accessed 13 March 2003).
Reference to a dataset:
[dataset] [6] M. Oguro, S. Imahiro, S. Saito, T. Nakashizuka, Mortality data for Japanese oak wilt
disease and surrounding forest compositions, Mendeley Data, v1, 2015. https://doi.org/10.17632/
xwj98nb39r.1.
Reference to software:
[7] E. Coon, M. Berndt, A. Jan, D. Svyatsky, A. Atchley, E. Kikinzon, D. Harp, G. Manzini, E. Shelef,
K. Lipnikov, R. Garimella, C. Xu, D. Moulton, S. Karra, S. Painter, E. Jafarov, S. Molins, Advanced
Terrestrial Simulator (ATS) v0.88 (Version 0.88), Zenodo, March 25, 2020. https://doi.org/10.5281/
zenodo.3727209.
Journal abbreviations source
Journal names should be abbreviated according to the List of Title Word Abbreviations.
Video
Elsevier accepts video material and animation sequences to support and enhance your scientific
research. Authors who have video or animation files that they wish to submit with their article are
strongly encouraged to include links to these within the body of the article. This can be done in the
same way as a figure or table by referring to the video or animation content and noting in the body
text where it should be placed. All submitted files should be properly labeled so that they directly
relate to the video file's content. In order to ensure that your video or animation material is directly
usable, please provide the file in one of our recommended file formats with a preferred maximum
size of 150 MB per file, 1 GB in total. Video and animation files supplied will be published online in
the electronic version of your article in Elsevier Web products, including ScienceDirect. Please supply
'stills' with your files: you can choose any frame from the video or animation or make a separate
image. These will be used instead of standard icons and will personalize the link to your video data. For
more detailed instructions please visit our video instruction pages. Note: since video and animation
cannot be embedded in the print version of the journal, please provide text for both the electronic
and the print version for the portions of the article that refer to this content.
Data visualization
Include interactive data visualizations in your publication and let your readers interact and engage
more closely with your research. Follow the instructions here to find out about available data
visualization options and how to include them with your article.
Supplementary material
Supplementary material such as applications, images and sound clips, can be published with your
article to enhance it. Submitted supplementary items are published exactly as they are received (Excel
or PowerPoint files will appear as such online). Please submit your material together with the article
and supply a concise, descriptive caption for each supplementary file. If you wish to make changes to

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 14

supplementary material during any stage of the process, please make sure to provide an updated file.
Do not annotate any corrections on a previous version. Please switch off the 'Track Changes' option
in Microsoft Office files as these will appear in the published version.
Research data
This journal requires and enables you to share data that supports your research publication where
appropriate, and enables you to interlink the data with your published articles. Research data
refers to the results of observations or experimentation that validate research findings. To facilitate
reproducibility and data reuse, this journal also encourages you to share your software, code, models,
algorithms, protocols, methods and other useful materials related to the project.

Below are a number of ways in which you can associate data with your article or make a statement
about the availability of your data when submitting your manuscript. When sharing data in one of
these ways, you are expected to cite the data in your manuscript and reference list. Please refer to the
"References" section for more information about data citation. For more information on depositing,
sharing and using research data and other relevant research materials, visit the research data page.
Data linking
If you have made your research data available in a data repository, you can link your article directly to
the dataset. Elsevier collaborates with a number of repositories to link articles on ScienceDirect with
relevant repositories, giving readers access to underlying data that gives them a better understanding
of the research described.

There are different ways to link your datasets to your article. When available, you can directly link
your dataset to your article by providing the relevant information in the submission system. For more
information, visit the database linking page.

For supported data repositories a repository banner will automatically appear next to your published
article on ScienceDirect.

In addition, you can link to relevant data or entities through identifiers within the text of your
manuscript, using the following format: Database: xxxx (e.g., TAIR: AT1G01020; CCDC: 734053;
PDB: 1XFN).
Data statement
To foster transparency, we require you to state the availability of your data in your submission if
your data is unavailable to access or unsuitable to post. This may also be a requirement of your
funding body or institution. You will have the opportunity to provide a data statement during the
submission process. The statement will appear with your published article on ScienceDirect. For more
information, visit the Data Statement page..

AFTER ACCEPTANCE
Changes to authorship
Once a manuscript is accepted, any changes in the authorship including addition, deletion or change
in the order of authors will not be possible.
Online proof correction
To ensure a fast publication process of the article, we kindly ask authors to provide us with their proof
corrections within two days. Corresponding authors will receive an e-mail with a link to our online
proofing system, allowing annotation and correction of proofs online. The environment is similar to
MS Word: in addition to editing text, you can also comment on figures/tables and answer questions
from the Copy Editor. Web-based proofing provides a faster and less error-prone process by allowing
you to directly type your corrections, eliminating the potential introduction of errors.
If preferred, you can still choose to annotate and upload your edits on the PDF version. All instructions
for proofing will be given in the e-mail we send to authors, including alternative methods to the online
version and PDF.
We will do everything possible to get your article published quickly and accurately. Please use this
proof only for checking the typesetting, editing, completeness and correctness of the text, tables and
figures. Significant changes to the article as accepted for publication will only be considered at this
stage with permission from the Editor. It is important to ensure that all corrections are sent back
to us in one communication. Please check carefully before replying, as inclusion of any subsequent
corrections cannot be guaranteed. Proofreading is solely your responsibility.

AUTHOR INFORMATION PACK 31 May 2023 www.elsevier.com/locate/matchemphys 15

Offprints
The corresponding author will, at no cost, receive a customized Share Link providing 50 days free
access to the final published version of the article on ScienceDirect. The Share Link can be used for
sharing the article via any communication channel, including email and social media. For an extra
charge, paper offprints can be ordered via the offprint order form which is sent once the article is
accepted for publication. Corresponding authors who have published their article gold open access
do not receive a Share Link as their final published version of the article is available open access on
ScienceDirect and can be shared through the article DOI link.

AUTHOR INQUIRIES
Visit the Elsevier Support Center to find the answers you need. Here you will find everything from
Frequently Asked Questions to ways to get in touch.
You can also check the status of your submitted article or find out when your accepted article will
be published.
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