Journal profile · Physics, Applied
Applied Physics Letters
ISSN 0003-6951 · eISSN 1077-3118 · American Institute of Physics · UNITED STATES · Weekly · Founded 1962
Applied Physics Letters: CAS Zone 2 · Physics & Astronomy (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 3.74; hybrid open access; review about 1.4 months (community reports); community-reported acceptance: 88%; 2,798 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Applied Physics Letters is published by American Institute of Physics and is in Zone 2 of Physics & Astronomy in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Semiconductor Quantum Structures and Devices, Semiconductor materials and devices and Photonic and Optical Devices, together about 27.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics and Electrical and Electronic Engineering. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Applied Physics Letters emphasizes rapid dissemination of key data and new physical insights, offering prompt publication of new experimental and theoretical papers related to applications of physics phenomena in all branches of science, engineering, and modern technology.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Physics, Applied
Editor-in-chief Maria Antonietta LoiPublisher website
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Semiconductor Quantum Structures and DevicesPhysics and Astronomy10.4%
- Semiconductor materials and devicesEngineering10.3%
- Photonic and Optical DevicesEngineering6.3%
- GaN-based semiconductor devices and materialsPhysics and Astronomy5.4%
- ZnO doping and propertiesMaterials Science4.6%
- Magnetic properties of thin filmsPhysics and Astronomy4.4%
- Quantum and electron transport phenomenaPhysics and Astronomy4.3%
- Semiconductor materials and interfacesPhysics and Astronomy4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Physics & Astronomy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Physics, Applied | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Physics & Astronomy Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Physics, Applied | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Physics & Astronomy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Physics, Applied | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 3.74LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 5.8LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.86LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.95LetPub ·
- h-index
- 401LetPub ·
- h-index
- 563OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 104,559OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 4.03OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 10.5%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 12.62%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 2,757LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 142,315 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2,232 | 393 | 968 |
| 2025 | 2,798 | 534 | 9,629 |
| 2024 | 2,747 | 709 | 20,708 |
| 2023 | 2,434 | 790 | 27,421 |
| 2022 | 2,132 | 716 | 29,806 |
| 2021 | 2,420 | 916 | 45,833 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
Too few articlesOnly 3 articles from the last 24 months carry both submission and acceptance dates, too few for a median
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 1.4 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 88%LetPub ·
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
No source has fee information yet; check the journal's website.
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- American Institute of Physics
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Weekly
- Founded
- 1962
- ISSN
- 0003-6951
- Electronic ISSN
- 1077-3118
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 129, Issue 9 (August 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Applied Physics Letters
What CAS zone is Applied Physics Letters in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Applied Physics Letters is in Zone 2 of Physics & Astronomy, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Physics, Applied. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 3 of Physics & Astronomy. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Applied Physics Letters?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 3.74; CiteScore 5.8, h-index 563.
How long does peer review take at Applied Physics Letters?
Authors report an average review time of about 1.4 months; the community-reported acceptance is “88%”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Which databases index Applied Physics Letters?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Applied Physics Letters is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Applied Physics Letters open access, and what is the APC?
Applied Physics Letters is a hybrid journal. Fee information is not available yet; check the journal's website.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-24). Last updated: .