Physical Review B Review Time: Time to First Decision and Publication

Physical Review B is the American Physical Society's flagship journal for condensed matter physics, materials physics, and related areas. The 2024 JIF is 3.7 (JCR 2024), Q2 in condensed matter physics. It's one of the largest physics journals in the world by publication volume.

APS runs a careful review process. That means slower timelines than MDPI or Wiley, but thorough, substantive referee reports.

Timeline at a glance

APS editorial structure

Physical Review B assigns papers to Associate Editors who make all decisions. APS does not use guest editors or special issue pipelines that change the review process.

Your paper goes to an editor working in your subfield: condensed matter theory, superconductivity, topological materials, magnetism, and so on. That means your paper is reviewed by someone with genuine expertise in the area, not a generalist.

The desk review period at PRB is longer than at many journals: 1-3 weeks is typical. Editors aren't just checking scope; they're making an initial assessment of whether the work is original and technically complete enough to send to referees.

What triggers desk rejection at PRB

PRB's desk rejection rate is roughly 20-30%. Common reasons:

Papers more appropriate for Letters. If your result has broad significance beyond condensed matter physics, editors may suggest Physical Review Letters instead.

Insufficient novelty. PRB is accessible for solid condensed matter work, but "I computed the band structure of a new compound" without new physics or a reason the result matters won't pass the desk.

Technical incompleteness. Missing data, calculations without convergence testing, or experimental papers without error analysis get flagged quickly.

Overlap with published work. APS editors check for redundancy. If very similar work has been published in PRB or a related journal within the past 1-3 years, that gets flagged at the desk.

External review at PRB

PRB typically sends papers to 1-2 referees. APS referees are anonymous (single-blind review). Referee invitations go out within a week or two of a desk accept decision.

The main timeline variable is referee availability. Very specialized topics (specific topological insulator systems, rare-earth magnetism, specific computational methods) have small referee pools. Finding a qualified, available referee can take 2-4 weeks.

APS referee reports are typically detailed: 3-5 pages with specific questions about methodology, requests for additional calculations, and pointed questions about whether claimed results follow from the data. The reports are genuinely useful for improving your paper.

Reading APS status indicators

• With Editor: Under desk review or waiting for editor assignment
• Awaiting Referee Reports: Paper is in external review -- the main waiting period
• Decision in Preparation: Editor has reports and is preparing a decision; usually comes within 1-2 weeks
• Awaiting Author Response: Revisions requested; your turn
• Accepted: Pending final files

If status stays at "With Editor" for more than 3 weeks, a brief inquiry is appropriate. If it's "Awaiting Referee Reports," you wait.

PRB vs. PRL

Physical Review Letters (JIF 8.1): For results with significance beyond condensed matter physics. PRL papers need to be short (4.5 pages) and accessible to the broader physics community. Review is faster (typically 6-8 weeks to first decision).

Physical Review B: For complete, detailed condensed matter physics papers. Better if your work is specialized but rigorous and you want room to fully describe methods and results.

The standard approach: if your result has broad physics interest, try PRL first. If rejected or clearly more specialized, submit to PRB.

Revision turnaround

Most PRB revisions involve substantive changes. The journal allows 90 days for major revisions. Responses to referee comments are expected to be thorough: a point-by-point reply addressing every question. Post-revision, papers often go back to the same referees. The second review round typically takes 4-8 weeks.

For the complete journal overview, see the Physical Review B journal page. Compare timelines across physics journals at our review timelines database.

Impact factor source: Clarivate Journal Citation Reports, JCR 2024.