Journal profile · Optics
Optics Communications
ISSN 0030-4018 · Elsevier · NETHERLANDS · Semimonthly · Founded 1969
Optics Communications: CAS Zone 3 · Physics & Astronomy (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.7; hybrid open access; APC about USD 2,600; review about 3.2 months (community reports); 1,215 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Optics Communications is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 3 of Physics & Astronomy in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Advanced Fiber Laser Technologies, Photonic and Optical Devices and Optical Network Technologies, together about 28.6% 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)
Browse through a wide range of high-quality academic journals offered by Elsevier, including open access options, to enrich your research journey.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Optics
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Advanced Fiber Laser TechnologiesPhysics and Astronomy11.9%
- Photonic and Optical DevicesEngineering11%
- Optical Network TechnologiesEngineering5.7%
- Laser-Matter Interactions and ApplicationsPhysics and Astronomy5.7%
- Photorefractive and Nonlinear OpticsPhysics and Astronomy5.4%
- Solid State Laser TechnologiesEngineering4.8%
- Advanced Fiber Optic SensorsEngineering4.7%
- Quantum optics and atomic interactionsPhysics and Astronomy4.4%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Physics & Astronomy Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Optics | 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 | Optics | Zone 3 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Physics & Astronomy Zone 3
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Physics & Astronomy | Zone 3 |
| Minor | Optics | Zone 4 |
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
- 2.7LetPub ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.7LetPub ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.55LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.87LetPub ·
- h-index
- 120LetPub ·
- h-index
- 191OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 17,963OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.93OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 7.4%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 7.2%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 1,135LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 40,537 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 831 | 131 | 302 |
| 2025 | 1,215 | 107 | 2,759 |
| 2024 | 1,053 | 126 | 6,014 |
| 2023 | 823 | 133 | 6,470 |
| 2022 | 745 | 82 | 7,454 |
| 2021 | 863 | 103 | 8,954 |
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
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 3.2 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 80%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.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 2,600 / EUR 2,430 / GBP 2,080 / JPY 322,480 | — | — |
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
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- NETHERLANDS
- Language
- Multi-Language
- Frequency
- Semimonthly
- Founded
- 1969
- ISSN
- 0030-4018
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗OpenAlex
- Submission system ↗LetPub
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Optics Communications
What CAS zone is Optics Communications in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Optics Communications is in Zone 3 of Physics & Astronomy, and in Zone 3 of the minor category Optics. 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 Optics Communications?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.7; CiteScore 4.7, h-index 191.
How long does peer review take at Optics Communications?
Authors report an average review time of about 3.2 months. 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 Optics Communications?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Optics Communications is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Optics Communications open access, and what is the APC?
Optics Communications is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 2,600.
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 2026-08-26). Last updated: .