Journal profile · Physics, Particles & Fields
EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C
ISSN 1434-6044 · eISSN 1434-6052 · Springer Berlin Heidelberg · GERMANY · Semimonthly · Founded 1998
EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C: CAS Zone 2 · Physics & Astronomy (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 4.78; diamond open access (no APC); no APC; median 89 days to acceptance (91 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: fairly easy; 1,516 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C is published by Springer Berlin Heidelberg 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 Particle physics theoretical and experimental studies, Quantum Chromodynamics and Particle Interactions and High-Energy Particle Collisions Research, together about 50.4% of its articles. Its main subfields are Nuclear and High Energy Physics. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The European Physical Journal C (EPJ C) is a full open-access single-blind peer-reviewed journal, fully sponsored by SCOAP3 . EPJ C presents new and original research results in experimental, theoretical and computational high-energy physics, in a variety of formats, including also Reviews and Letters. The range of topics is extensive: Experimental Physics I: Accelerator Based High-Energy Physics Experimental Physics II: Astroparticle Physics Computing, Software and Data Science Theoretical Physics I: Phenomenology of the Standard Model and Beyond Theoretical Physics II: Astroparticle Physics and Cosmology - Models and Phenomenology Theoretical Physics III: Quantum Field Theory and Gravity - Fundamental and Formal Aspects Editor-in-Chief - Experimental Physics I : Accelerator Based High-Energy Physics Francesco Forti Editor-in-Chief - Experimental Physics II: Astroparticle Physics Julia K. Vogel Editor-in-Chief - Computing, Software and Data Science Markus Elsing Editor-in-Chief - Theoretical Physics I: Phenomenology of the Standard Model and Beyond Giulia Zanderighi Editor-in-Chief - Theoretical Physics II: Astroparticle Physics and Cosmology - Models and Phenomenology Dominik J. Schwarz Editor-in-Chief - Theoretical Physics III: Quantum Field Theory and Gravity - Fundamental and Formal Aspects Emilian Dudas View all editors
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Physics, Particles & Fields
Editorial board by country: 4 in mainland China (about 4%); most named Germany 20, Italy 15, Switzerland 14, United Kingdom 13, France 12 (112 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Particle physics theoretical and experimental studiesPhysics and Astronomy21.2%
- Quantum Chromodynamics and Particle InteractionsPhysics and Astronomy16.1%
- High-Energy Particle Collisions ResearchPhysics and Astronomy13.1%
- Black Holes and Theoretical PhysicsPhysics and Astronomy10.8%
- Cosmology and Gravitation TheoriesPhysics and Astronomy9.8%
- Dark Matter and Cosmic PhenomenaPhysics and Astronomy3.6%
- Noncommutative and Quantum Gravity TheoriesPhysics and Astronomy3.6%
- Neutrino Physics ResearchPhysics and Astronomy3.3%
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, Particles & Fields | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Physics & Astronomy Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Physics, Particles & Fields | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview 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, Particles & Fields | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
EI CompendexINSPECCASCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: Google Scholar, EBSCO, ProQuest, Dimensions, CNKI, Baidu, Astrophysics Data System, Naver, OCLC, Portico, CLOCKSS
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
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
- 4.78LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 4.9Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 4.5Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 7.7LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.16LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.31LetPub ·
- h-index
- 156LetPub ·
- h-index
- 246OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 12,673OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.05OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 16.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 99.92%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 1,443LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 11,900,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 25,209 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1,136 | 1,136 | 882 |
| 2025 | 1,516 | 1,516 | 6,738 |
| 2024 | 1,377 | 1,377 | 12,714 |
| 2023 | 1,215 | 1,215 | 16,591 |
| 2022 | 1,197 | 1,197 | 20,034 |
| 2021 | 1,190 | 1,190 | 24,593 |
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 Crossref · to
89 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 62 days – 132 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 19 days (91 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 114 days
- Sample
- 91 articles with submission and acceptance dates (2,962 in the window); the latest was accepted on
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)
- 2–4 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- Fairly easyLetPub ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 12 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
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
Diamond open access (no APC)DOAJ
Every article is open access and authors pay no article processing charge.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | No APC | No | CC BY | |
| OpenAlex | USD 0 | — | — | |
| LetPub | No APC | No | — |
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
- Springer Berlin Heidelberg
- Country or region
- GERMANY
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Semimonthly
- Founded
- 1998
- ISSN
- 1434-6044
- Electronic ISSN
- 1434-6052
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C
What CAS zone is EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C is in Zone 2 of Physics & Astronomy, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Physics, Particles & Fields. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Physics & Astronomy. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 4.78; CiteScore 7.7, h-index 246.
How long does peer review take at EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C?
Based on the dates recorded on 91 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 89 days (interquartile range 62–132 days); authors report an average review time of 2–4 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Fairly easy”. 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.
Where are the editorial board members of EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C based?
Of the 112 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 4 (about 4%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Germany (20), Italy (15) and Switzerland (14). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C is indexed in SCIE, Scopus and DOAJ. The journal's website also lists EI Compendex, INSPEC, CAS and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C open access, and what is the APC?
EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL C is a diamond open-access journal (no APC). It charges no article processing charge.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website, DOAJ; 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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .