Advanced Functional Materials Formatting Requirements: Complete Author Guide

All primary research and review articles require an abstract, and the Research Article, Review, and Perspective types each take one of 200 words maximum.

• Word limit: 200 words maximum

• Style: Written in the present tense and impersonal style (avoiding "we")

• Abbreviations: Defined when first used

• Citations: Not allowed

• Keywords: 3 to 7 keywords

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.

Keywords: AFM asks for 3 to 7 keywords. 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:

Table of Contents (ToC) text and graphic (requested for the revised manuscript):

The guidelines say a short text and graphic should be provided for the ToC, and they list it among the guidelines for preparing revised manuscripts ("You do not need to reformat your manuscript for a new submission"). The graphic appears with the paper in the journal's table of contents and is the first visual impression of your paper.

ToC specifications:

• Image size: either 55 mm x 50 mm or 110 mm x 20 mm (w x h)

• Bitmap pixel width: 650 pixels for 55 mm x 50 mm, 1300 pixels for 110 mm x 20 mm, with labels at least 10 point

• Text: 50 to 60 words describing the main results, written for a general audience in the third person

• The author must be the copyright holder for the graphic and any images used to create it

• Should convey the main message of the article; it can be a combination of figures or a new, original figure

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: Label panels with lower-case letters (a, b, c) consistently, preferably in the top left corner. Keep axis labels, font sizes, and color schemes uniform across panels. Reviewers notice inconsistencies.

Table formatting:

• Headers for every column

• Only three horizontal rules (head rule, neck rule, foot rule), no vertical lines

• A brief legend

• Footnotes using Roman lowercase letters followed by a closing parenthesis

• Included in the manuscript document, following the example in the template

AFM asks for numbered citations and a consistent reference style. The guidelines say there is no submission requirement for formatting references; if your manuscript is accepted, the typesetters update the formatting into the journal style.

In-text citations: Numbered citations (inline square brackets), with references numbered in the order of their citation. Each numbered reference should contain only one literature citation, not multiple sub-parts (a, b, c).

Reference list contents:

• Author(s) name(s)

• Journal title or book title

• Article title (where applicable)

• Year of publication

• Volume and issue, or book chapter

• Pagination

• DOI is optional, but highly recommended

• List all authors, but if the number exceeds six, list three followed by "et al."

• Include the full length article title and the full length journal name

The guidelines show their examples in Chicago reference style.

AFM does not publish a reference limit. For Reviews, the guidelines ask that the reference list be well-balanced and that unpublished results not be included.

If you're switching from an ACS or Elsevier journal to AFM, you do not need to reformat references for a new submission as long as the style is consistent throughout the manuscript. Use a citation manager to keep the style consistent.

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 text and graphics as a separate document where possible (Word or PDF)

• Embed any graphics in the SI file rather than submitting them as separate graphics files

• Multimedia files, raw data, and code may be provided separately, with large files in a compressed format such as .zip or .rar

• Include the title and names of all the authors (a template for this page is included in the manuscript template)

• SI is hosted online and appears without editing or typesetting, so it should be error free

Research Articles also use SI extensively, because a materials science paper generates more characterization data than the main text can carry. The main article must stand on its own in the absence of the SI, so the main text should present the core story and the SI should provide the supporting evidence.

AFM manuscripts are submitted and tracked through Wiley Authors.

Cover letter: The guidelines require one when the manuscript is a revised or extended version of one the journal previously rejected (explain in detail what changed); otherwise it is your chance to make the case. 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, if you wish to recommend any

Submission components:

• Manuscript as a Word file or single PDF from LaTeX, prepared with the Wiley template

• ToC graphic at one of the two listed sizes (requested for the revised manuscript)

• ToC text of 50 to 60 words

• Keywords (3 to 7)

• Supporting Information as separate file(s), a single document where possible

• Title page statements, including data availability, funding, and conflict of interest disclosure

• ORCID ID

Reviewer suggestions: Wiley lists specific recommendations by the authors among the factors used to select 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:

There is no page limit. The guidelines give typical lengths (around 3000 to 8000 words for a Research Article) and say submitted manuscripts can be any length, but the scientific contents should justify the length.

The abstract has a 200-word ceiling. It is written in the present tense and impersonal style, defines abbreviations when first used, and contains no references.

ToC text and graphic follow the revised-manuscript guidelines. The graphic is either 55 mm x 50 mm or 110 mm x 20 mm, and the author must be the copyright holder for it.

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 Research Articles, the optional Experimental or Methods section comes after the main text and before the Acknowledgements and References.

Color in figures. The guidelines ask that different types of atoms in structural chemistry figures be clearly distinguishable by color, so don't convert those figures to grayscale.

Typesetting and proofs. If the manuscript is accepted, the typesetters update the formatting into the journal style, and the corresponding author must ensure that all authors have a chance to review the galley proofs. Check figure quality carefully at that stage.

Transfers from Advanced Materials. If your paper is not accepted at Advanced Materials, the editor may recommend transferring it to AFM through Wiley's Refer and Transfer program. The transfer carries your submitted files and any reviewer reports to the receiving journal, and Wiley says there is no need to reformat.

For manuscripts targeting Advanced Functional Materials, four patterns generate the most consistent desk-rejection outcomes.

ToC graphic using the wrong dimensions. AFM lists two ToC graphic sizes, 55 mm x 50 mm and 110 mm x 20 mm (w x h). Authors submitting from ACS or RSC journals frequently reuse a graphical abstract built for another journal's shape. The image should be purpose-built for one of the two AFM sizes (as a bitmap, 650 pixels wide for 55 mm x 50 mm and 1300 pixels wide for 110 mm x 20 mm, with labels of at least 10 point).

Multifunctional property claims without sufficient evidence for each function. AFM publishes materials with functional properties, and editors and reviewers scrutinize claims about multiple simultaneous functions. A material claimed to be simultaneously flexible, self-healing, and highly conductive requires rigorous independent characterization of each property, plus stability data demonstrating the functions are retained over time. Papers that demonstrate one function well but assert the others with weak evidence receive major revision requests to characterize the incomplete functions properly.

Application study without functional materials innovation. Like Advanced Materials, AFM focuses on materials whose functional properties are novel and significant, not on application studies that use known functional materials. A composite material studied in a new device architecture, where the composite itself has been reported previously, is rejected for insufficient novelty. The innovation must be at the material level, not at the application level.

Short-term stability data for functional coatings or device applications. AFM reviewers require long-term stability demonstrations for any material proposed for practical functional use. Self-healing coating papers without accelerated weathering data, flexible electronics without bending cycle fatigue data, or anti-icing surfaces without humidity-cycle stability data generate revision requests. The community expectation has shifted toward 1,000-cycle minimum for mechanical flexibility demonstrations and equivalent aging protocols for other functional claims.

A Advanced Functional Materials submission readiness check evaluates ToC graphic compliance, multifunctional evidence rigor, materials novelty, and stability data against these patterns.