Optics Express Online Style Guide

Authors should follow the Optics Express Online Style Guide to help speed production and review. Note that adherence to proper References format is particularly important. Additional information and templates for MS Word and LaTeX are also available. Use of the OpEx templates is a requirement.

Page layout	Abstract	References	Tables
Title	OCIS codes	Internet links	Quality of English
Author names	Acronyms	Figures
Affiliations New	Math	Multimedia New

1. Layout and Title Page Elements

Page layout for MS Word should be as follows for estimating final length: Body text: 10-pt Times New Roman. Paper size, U.S. letter. Margins: 1-in. top, 1.625-in. left, right, and bottom. The LaTeX style file will provide proper layout for TeX files.

The title should be concise but informative. Avoid beginning with an article, a preposition, or the words "new" or "novel." Titles may be edited by the publisher to facilitate computer search.

Author names should be given in full and consistent form to facilitate indexing. Every effort should be made to keep author names consistent from one paper to the next as they appear within OSA publications. Affiliations and postal addresses for all authors should appear on the title page. If all authors share one affiliation, superscript numbers are not needed. The corresponding author will have an asterisk indicating footnote. Abbreviations should not be used. E-mail address for the corresponding author should be given.

V. G. Niziev,¹ R. S. Chang,^2* and A. V. Nesterov^2,3

¹National United University, Miao-Li, 36003, Taiwan
²Institute on Laser and Information Technologies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Shatura, Moscow Region, 140700, Russia
³Current address: College of Optical Science, University of Arizona, 1630 E. University Boulevard, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
*Corresponding author: xyz@osa.org

The abstract should be limited to approximately 100 words. It should be an explicit summary of the paper that states the problem, the methods used, and the major results and conclusions. If another publication is referenced in the abstract, abbreviated information (e.g., authors, journal, volume number, first page, year) must be given in the abstract itself without a reference number. The first reference cited in the main text will be [1]. Note that the combination of abstract and title must be an adequate indicator of the content of the paper, since it will stand alone in electronic bibliographic databases and printed abstracting journals.

OCIS codes should be provided to help with indexing. OCIS codes can be selected during upload and are also available at http://www.opticsinfobase.org/submit/ocis/.

2. Mathematical and Scientific Notation

2.A. Math

For MS Word, use Word's Equation Editor or MathType for in-text and display notation wherever possible. Numbered display equations can be labeled manually or with MathType's numbering feature. For TeX, use of standard LaTeX or AMSTeX commands will greatly facilitate production. Please keep all notation and formatting as simple as possible.

2.B. In-line Math

Simple fractions in in-line math should use parentheses when necessary to avoid ambiguity, for example, to distinguish between 1/(n - 1) and 1/n - 1. In-text fractions should be set on line, not built up. Exceptions to this are proper fractions such as Â½, which are better left in this form. Summations and integrals that appear within text such as Â½ (n² - 2n)^-1 should have limits placed to the right of the symbol to reduce white space and should not use oversized symbols.

2.C. General Guidelines on Notation

Notation must be legible, clear, compact, and consistent with standard usage. In general, acronyms should be defined at first use. Adherence to the following guidelines will greatly assist the production process:

Radical Signs. When possible, avoid oversized radical signs by using the notation of a superscript 1/2. For example, change to [(a + b)(a - c)]^1/2.

Exponentials. Avoid tiny superscripts of exponential e (e.g., e^jkl) by using the alternative exp notation, exp(jkl).

Variables and Vectors. Set single-letter variables in italics (k). Set three-vectors in boldface (k). Functions, derivative "d," abbreviations, and multiletter identifiers should be set in roman (plain) type .

Multiplication. In general, close up multiplied terms (p_yp_x); use × if multiplication sign is essential (1 × 10²) or for continuation in displayed equations [see Eq. (2) above]. Use raised dot only for scalar product (k · k).

Fences. For simple bracketing the usual order of parentheses and brackets is { [ ( { [ ( · ) ] } ) ] } .

Bit and Byte. The standard abbreviations for bit and byte are b and B, respectively. To avoid confusion, these units should be spelled out in most cases (1 bit, 20 GByte).

Metric System. The metric system is used in OSA journals. If nonmetric units are essential (e.g., for parts specifications), conversion should be given at first mention: ". . . a ¼-in. bolt (1 in. = 2.54 cm)."

3. References and Notes

References and Notes should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are first referenced in the body of the paper. Two references [2,3] should be included together, separated by a comma, and three or more consecutive references should be indicated by the bounding numbers and an en dash [1–4].

Each source must have its own reference number.

When on-line reference numbers are essential (e.g., see [1]), it is not necessary to use the words "Reference(s)" or "Ref(s)." except when needed for clarity. Footnotes (notes at the bottom of text pages) are not used in OSA journals. Footnotes should be incorporated into the text or set with references as an endnote.

When reference authors are mentioned in the text, use surnames only (unless further clarity is needed), and use "et al." and first author name when three or more authors are given.

Here are some examples of how to set the most common reference types:

Journal paper

1. C. van Trigt, "Visual system-response functions and estimating reflectance," J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 14, 741-755 (1997).

Book

2. T. Masters, Practical Neural Network Recipes in C++ (Academic, 1993).

Chapter in a book

3. B. L. Shoop, A. H. Sayles, and D. M. Litynski, "New devices for optoelectronics: smart pixels," in Handbook of Fiber Optic Data Communications, C. DeCusatis, D. Clement, E. Maass, and R. Lasky, eds. (Academic, 1997), pp. 705-758.

Paper in a published conference proceedings

4. R. E. Kalman,"Algebraic aspects of the generalized inverse of a rectangular matrix," in Proceedings of Advanced Seminar on Genralized Inverse and Applications, M. Z. Nashed, ed. (Academic, 1976), pp. 111-124.

Paper published in an OSA conference proceedings

5. R. Craig and B. Gignac, "High-power 980-nm pump lasers," in Optical Fiber Communication Conference, Vol. 2 of 1996 OSA Technical Digest Series (Optical Society of America, 1996), paper ThG1.

Paper in an unpublished conference proceedings

6. D. Steup and J. Weinzierl, "Resonant THz-meshes," presented at the Fourth International Workshop on THz Electronics, Erlangen-Tennenlohe, Germany, 5-6 Sept. 1996.

SPIE proceedings

7. G. D. Love, C. N. Dunlop, S. Patrick, C. D. Saunter, "Horizontal turbulence measurements using SLODAR," Proc. SPIE 5891, 27-32 (2005).

IEEE proceedings

8. T. Darrel and K. Wohn, "Pyramid based depth from focus," in Proceedings of IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (IEEE, 1988), pp. 504-509.

Paper accepted for publication

9. D. Piao, Q. Zhu, N. K. Dutta, S. Yan, and L. L. Otis, "Cancelation of coherent artifacts in optical coherence tomography imaging," Appl. Opt. (to be published).

Manuscript in preparation

10. J. Q. Smith, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester, 250 East River Road, Rochester, N.Y. 14623, and K. Marshall are preparing a manuscript to be called "Optical effects in liquid crystals."

Personal communication

11. Barbara Williams, Editorial Department, Optical Society of America, 2010 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20036 (personal communication, 2001).

Internet links

12. A. G. Ramm, "Invisible obstacles," http://www.arxiv.org/abs/math-ph/0608034.

4. Figures and Multimedia

4.A. Figures

Figures may be submitted in color or black and white. Set each figure in the body of the text above its caption. Images and text must be clear and legible for on-screen viewing. Place figures as closely as possible to where they are mentioned in the text. No part of a figure should go beyond the typing area. The figure should not be embedded inside the text.

Figure Layout

Multimedia files may also be included. See guidelines on http://www.opticsexpress.org/submission/multimedia.cfm.

4.B. Tables

Tables should be numbered and should be set in the body of the manuscript. The table title, which should be brief, goes above the table. Detailed explanations or table footnotes should be set directly beneath the table, as shown. Tables should use horizontal rules to delimit the top and bottom of the table and column headings. In general, no other rules should be are used.

5. Final Remarks

Optics Express manuscripts should be uploaded electronically through the OpEx Author Page. Quality of English standards must be met for final acceptance and publication. Note that in some cases copyediting may be required for acceptance. Copyediting services are available from OSA for a fee (contact OpEx staff for details). If a student-level reader might find your English difficult to understand, please have a colleague who is fluent in English edit your paper before you submit it to OSA. Ensure that manuscripts are free of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other errors before submission to OSA.

The following additional resources may be helpful to authors. For spelling, OSA follows Merriam-Webster (Collegiate). Our editorial style is based on the AIP Style Manual.

Online Journals