ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

• Word limit: Articles are limited to 300 words; Perspectives use a brief abstract of about 120 words

• Content: The abstract should summarize the significant results and conclusions

The abstract should be self-contained and informative. ACS editors want to see specific results. "We developed a high-performance electrode material" is too vague. "The composite electrode delivered a specific capacitance of 450 F/g at 1 A/g with 95% retention after 10,000 cycles" tells the reader what you actually found.

Keywords: The ACS AMI author guidelines do not list a keywords requirement. Check a recent article in the journal before deciding whether to include them.

TOC/Abstract graphic: Mandatory. This is the visual that appears in the table of contents and alongside the abstract on the ACS Publications website.

TOC graphic specifications:

• Size: fit in an area no larger than 3.25 inches by 1.75 inches (about 8.25 cm by 4.45 cm)

• Resolution and format: TIF at 300 dpi for color and 1200 dpi for black and white, or EPS in RGB document color mode with all fonts converted to outlines or embedded

• Minimal text; text should usually be limited to the labeling of compounds, reaction arrows, and diagrams

• Label the graphic "For Table of Contents Only" and provide it on the last page of the submitted manuscript

The TOC graphic is often the first thing readers see. In a journal that publishes thousands of papers annually, your TOC graphic determines whether someone clicks on your paper or scrolls past it. Invest time in making it clean and visually clear.

ACS AMI papers are typically figure-heavy, with extensive characterization data (XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, electrochemical measurements) forming the core of most studies.

Figure specifications:

Figure count: ACS AMI does not publish a maximum number of figures. Keep the main text focused on the figures that carry the argument and move supporting characterization to the Supporting Information.

Multi-panel figures: Very common at ACS AMI. A single figure might contain panels (a) through (h) showing different characterization techniques or measurement conditions. Label panels clearly and explain each panel in the caption. Keep font sizes consistent across panels.

Table formatting:

• Each table needs a brief (one phrase or sentence) title that can be understood without the text

• Put details in footnotes, not in the title

• Keep tables simple and concise, and avoid merging or splitting cells

• Tables should supplement, not duplicate, information in the text and figures

Color reproduction of graphics is provided at no additional cost to the author, but graphics intended to appear in black and white or grayscale should not be submitted in color.

For initial submission, ACS AMI accepts references in any style, as long as they are complete, including titles. The ACS Style Quick Guide lists the required components of each reference type.

In-text citations: ACS articles commonly cite references with superscript numbers, e.g., "as reported previously^{1,2}". Initial submissions can use any style.

Reference list format:

(1) Author, A. B.; Author, C. D. Title of Article. J. Abbrev. Name Year, Volume, Pages.

Key details of ACS reference style (initial submissions can use any complete style):

• Author names: Last name, initials (Smith, A. B.)

• Semicolons between authors

• Abbreviated journal titles per CAS conventions

• Year in bold

• Volume in italics

• Include a DOI where one exists

• For books: Author, A. B. Title; Publisher: City, Year; pp Pages.

• For patents: Inventor, A. B. Patent Number, Year.

ACS AMI does not publish a reference cap for Articles. Don't pad the reference list with marginally relevant citations, but don't artificially limit yourself either.

Use an ACS style file in your citation manager. With 50+ references, manual formatting is error-prone and time-consuming.

ACS encourages authors to make extensive use of Supporting Information (SI). It's where non-essential technical detail can live, and reviewers can see it during peer review.

What goes in Supporting Information:

• Detailed experimental procedures (synthesis conditions, characterization parameters)

• Additional characterization data (full spectra, additional SEM/TEM images)

• Control experiments and reproducibility data

• Computational details (DFT parameters, convergence criteria)

• Video files (in situ measurements, dynamic processes)

SI format requirements:

• Submit Supporting Information at the same time as the manuscript, as separate file(s)

• Many file types are accepted, not only PDF (see ACS's list of acceptable software by file designation)

• Choose "Supporting Information for Publication" or "Supporting Information for Review Only" for each file

• Include copies of unpublished or in-press references as review-only files

• Describe each file in the manuscript (see below)

SI scope at ACS AMI: The main manuscript presents the story and key results; the SI provides the evidence that supports the story.

ACS requires a brief, nonsentence description of each Supporting Information file, including the file type extension. The description is labeled Supporting Information and appears before the Acknowledgement and References sections. For example: "Supporting Information: Additional TEM images, XPS survey spectra, CV curves at varying scan rates, and computational details (PDF)."

A common mistake: placing critical results only in the SI. If a result is essential to your main argument, it should be in the main text. The SI supplements the paper; it doesn't replace parts of it.

ACS AMI uses the ACS Publishing Center submission system, which requires a free ACS ID.

Cover letter: Required with every submission. It should include:

• A paragraph explaining why the manuscript is appropriate for ACS AMI, which must indicate what application is described in the work

• A statement confirming the manuscript, or its contents in some other form, has not been published previously by any of the authors and is not under consideration for publication in another journal

• If the manuscript was previously rejected by ACS AMI, the earlier manuscript number, a detailed response to each reviewer's comments, and the consent to resubmit from the editor who handled the previous version

• A note if the manuscript was invited, and a note of any preprint server use

Additional requirements:

• TOC/Abstract graphic (required)

• ORCID iD (required for authors submitting manuscript revisions; strongly encouraged for all authors)

• Conflict of interest disclosure (the corresponding author provides a statement on behalf of all authors)

• Funding sources and grant numbers, entered in both the Funder Registry Tool in the submission system and the manuscript

• Research data: ACS strongly encourages authors to make the data underlying the article publicly available

Reviewer suggestions: Suggesting reviewers is optional, and ACS says suggestions will be considered but cannot always be accommodated. Avoid suggesting reviewers from your own institution or anyone with a real or perceived conflict of interest, and use institutional rather than personal email addresses where possible.

ORCID requirement: ACS requires authors submitting manuscript revisions to provide their own validated ORCID iD before completing the submission, if one is not already linked to their ACS Publishing Center profile. All authors are strongly encouraged to register for an ORCID iD.

These are the details that regular ACS AMI authors know:

The TOC graphic is required. ACS says you must include a graphical summary for the table of contents, so plan for it early.

SI is encouraged. ACS encourages extensive use of Supporting Information and does not list it as mandatory for Articles. Put essential results in the main text and supporting detail in the SI.

Keywords. The author guidelines do not list a keywords requirement. Check a recent article in the journal before deciding whether to add a keywords line.

Experimental section. The guidelines call for experimental procedures in enough detail for an expert reader to reproduce the experiments. Non-essential technical details may go in the Supporting Information.

ASAP publication. Accepted manuscripts are published on the ASAP Articles page once page proofs are corrected and all author concerns are resolved. Return galley proofs within 48 hours to keep publication on schedule.

Copyright and Open Access. At acceptance, you'll choose between ACS copyright transfer (subscription access) and ACS Open Access (immediate open access costs $4,500 for CC BY or $4,000 for CC BY-NC-ND, and a 12-month delayed route costs $2,500 or $2,000; publishing without an open access option carries no charge). The formatting requirements are identical regardless of access model.

These catch ACS AMI authors regularly:

1. TOC graphic size. The graphic should fit in an area no larger than 3.25 x 1.75 inches. Create it at the size it will be used rather than cropping it afterward.

1. Complete references. References can be in any style at initial submission, but they must be complete, including titles.

1. SI description. Each Supporting Information file needs a brief, nonsentence description in the manuscript, labeled Supporting Information and placed before the Acknowledgement and References sections. This is easy to forget.

1. ORCID linkage. ACS requires authors submitting a revision to provide their own validated ORCID iD before completing the submission. Link it to your ACS Publishing Center profile early.

1. Figure file formats. For separately uploaded manuscript graphics, ACS accepts TIF, EPS, or PDF files. Graphics can also be embedded in the manuscript file.

For manuscripts targeting ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, four patterns generate the most consistent desk-rejection outcomes.

TOC graphic wrong dimensions or absent. ACS requires a TOC (Table of Contents) graphic that fits within 3.25 inches by 1.75 inches, saved as a TIF (300 dpi for color, 1200 dpi for black and white) or an EPS file. The most consistent error is submitting a portrait or square image carried over from a Wiley-formatted draft, or treating the TOC as optional. It is required.

Characterization data insufficient for surface or interface claims. ACS AMI's scope centers on materials interfaces and surfaces, and reviewers apply corresponding standards. Papers that characterize bulk material properties (XRD, TGA) without direct surface characterization (XPS, AFM, contact angle, TEM/STEM cross-section) are returned when the central claim is surface-related. The characterization suite must match the scope of the claim.

Application study without a materials interface contribution. Despite "Applied" in the title, in our experience ACS AMI editors look for the interface or surface phenomenon to be the scientific protagonist, not a performance metric recorded on a known material. Manuscripts where a known material is benchmarked in a device context, without new insight into the interface mechanism, are often desk-rejected for scope.

Supporting Information absent or too sparse for the characterization claims. ACS AMI reviewers expect SI containing full synthetic protocols, complete characterization datasets, control experiments, and statistical replication data. Papers that compress all supplementary data into 2-3 pages without addressing reviewer-expected controls are flagged before peer review.

A ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces submission readiness check evaluates manuscript structure, surface characterization completeness, and TOC graphic compliance against these desk-rejection patterns before you invest revision time.