Advanced Functional Materials Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

AFM's abstract format depends on article type.

• Full Papers, Feature Articles, Reviews: 200-word unstructured abstract
• Communications: No separate abstract; the opening paragraph serves this function

For Full Papers:

• Word limit: 200 words maximum
• Structure: Unstructured (single paragraph)
• Citations: Not allowed
• Keywords: 5 keywords required, listed below the abstract

The 200-word abstract should state the problem, describe the approach, present the main quantitative result, and address significance. Materials science abstracts should include specific numbers: synthesis temperature, device efficiency, mechanical strength, etc.

For Communications, the first paragraph acts as the abstract. This paragraph appears in database listings and on the journal's website. Write it to be self-contained and informative. Don't open with extensive background context. Get to the result quickly.

Keywords: AFM requires exactly 5 keywords. These are used for indexing, editor assignment, and reviewer matching. Choose specific, descriptive terms. "Energy storage" is too broad; "solid-state lithium-sulfur battery" is better.

Figures are central to AFM papers. Materials science is a visual field, and editors expect publication-quality figures that clearly present the data.

Figure specifications:

TOC image (mandatory):

The TOC image is required for every submission type in AFM. It appears in the journal's online table of contents and is the first visual impression of your paper.

TOC image specifications:

• Dimensions: 5 cm high by 12.7 cm wide
• Resolution: 300 dpi minimum
• Format: TIFF or EPS
• Accompanied by a 50-word text description
• Should visually capture the main concept of the paper

Design the TOC image to stand alone. It should be interpretable without reading the title or abstract. The best AFM TOC images use a clean visual metaphor or a striking data visualization. Avoid cluttered multi-panel layouts or screenshots from instruments.

Multi-panel figures: Standard practice at AFM. Label panels (a), (b), (c) consistently. Keep axis labels, font sizes, and color schemes uniform across panels. Reviewers notice inconsistencies.

Table formatting:

• Headers for every column
• Horizontal rules only (no vertical lines)
• Title above the table
• Footnotes below using superscript letters
• Editable format, not images

AFM uses Wiley's numbered reference style, which is the same system used by Advanced Materials and other Wiley materials science journals.

In-text citations: Superscript numbers in square brackets, e.g., [1], [2,3], [4-7]. Numbers assigned sequentially by order of first appearance.

Reference list format:

[1] A. B. Author, C. D. Author, J. Abbrev. Name Year, Volume, Pages.

Key formatting details:

• Author initials before last name with spaces (A. B. Smith)
• All authors listed (no "et al." in the reference list)
• Journal titles abbreviated and italicized
• Year follows journal name
• Volume, then page numbers
• DOIs encouraged but not mandatory in the reference list
• Book format: A. B. Author, Title of Book, Publisher, City Year.

There's no formal reference cap. Full Papers typically cite 40-60 references. Communications cite 20-35. Feature Articles and Reviews cite 100+.

If you're switching from an ACS or Elsevier journal to AFM, the reference format will need updating. Wiley's style places the year differently and uses different author name conventions. Use a citation manager with the Wiley style file to avoid manual formatting errors.

AFM calls supplementary content "Supporting Information" (SI), consistent with Wiley conventions.

What belongs in Supporting Information:

• Detailed synthetic procedures and characterization methods
• Additional spectroscopic, microscopy, or diffraction data
• Device fabrication details and additional performance data
• Computational methodology and convergence tests
• Video files (in situ experiments, device demonstrations)

SI requirements:

• Submit as a single PDF (for text, figures, tables)
• Videos and large data files as separate uploads
• Self-contained with own numbering (Figure S1, Table S1)
• Include a header with the article title and all author names
• All SI items must be cited in the main text

For Communications, the Supporting Information carries the bulk of the experimental detail. It's typical for a 5-page Communication to have 15-25 pages of SI containing full experimental methods, characterization data, and control experiments. Reviewers check this material thoroughly.

Full Papers also use SI extensively. Even with 10 published pages, there's rarely enough room for all the characterization data a materials science paper generates. The main text should present the core story, and the SI should provide the supporting evidence.

AFM uses Wiley's online submission system.

Cover letter: Required. Should include:

• Statement of why the work belongs in AFM (not just "a leading materials journal")
• Description of the novelty and functional significance
• Confirmation of originality and exclusive submission
• Suggested reviewers (4-6 recommended)
• For Communications: a statement explaining why the Communication format is appropriate

Required submission components:

• Manuscript in Wiley template
• TOC image at correct dimensions (mandatory)
• TOC image text description (50 words max)
• Keywords (exactly 5)
• Supporting Information as a self-contained PDF
• Cover letter
• Conflict of interest disclosure
• ORCID iD for the corresponding author

Reviewer suggestions: AFM asks for suggested and excluded reviewers. Provide names from different institutions and countries. Avoid suggesting close collaborators or anyone at your own institution.

AFM is highly selective, and the cover letter matters. The editor needs to see that your paper addresses a meaningful problem in functional materials, not just that you made a new material. Focus on the function: what can this material do that wasn't possible before? How does the functional performance compare to the state of the art?

These are the details that regular AFM submitters know:

Page limits are on typeset pages. Your double-spaced manuscript might be 30 pages, but what matters is the published page count. Use the two-column Wiley template to check. If your Full Paper is at 11 typeset pages, it needs trimming.

Communications have no separate abstract. The opening paragraph (2-4 sentences) is extracted as the abstract by databases and the journal's website. Write it to stand alone.

TOC image is mandatory and checked. The submission system won't let you proceed without it. The 5 cm x 12.7 cm dimension must be exact.

Functional emphasis is expected. AFM's scope centers on the relationship between material structure and function. Papers that report a new material without demonstrating a functional application or property are better suited for other journals. Editors screen for functional relevance.

Experimental section placement. In Full Papers, the Experimental Section comes at the end of the paper, after Discussion and before References. In Communications, all experimental details go in the Supporting Information.

Color is free everywhere. Online and print. Don't convert figures to grayscale.

Wiley copyediting. AFM articles go through Wiley's professional copyediting. You'll receive proof pages to review. Check figure quality carefully, as the production system occasionally compresses images.

Dual submission with Advanced Materials. If your paper is rejected from Advanced Materials, the editor may suggest transferring to AFM. The transfer preserves your reviewer reports and submission history. If this happens, you may need to adjust the manuscript length (Advanced Materials uses different page limits for some article types).

These trip up AFM authors regularly:

1. TOC image dimensions. 5 cm x 12.7 cm is exact. Images that don't match are returned.

1. 5 keywords exactly. Not 4, not 6. The system checks.

1. Communication opening paragraph. It must function as an abstract. If your Communication starts with two paragraphs of background before mentioning your result, the editor will push back.

1. Page count accuracy. Check with the Wiley two-column template. Authors who use generic templates consistently underestimate their published page count.

1. SI header. The Supporting Information document must include the article title and all author names at the top. This Wiley requirement is easy to overlook.