Manuscript Preparation Guidelines

 

TMS Proceedings Manuscript Preparation Guidelines

Manuscript Preparation

Submit your manuscript in either Microsoft Word (preferred file types include .doc, and .docx) or LaTeX (file type .tex). PDF manuscript submissions will not be accepted. If you choose to submit your manuscript in LaTeX format, you must include a separate PDF file for reviewers. This file should be included in the .zip file that contains your figures (see figure instructions below).

Authors using Microsoft Word should create a conventional Word file with the paper title, author names and affiliations, keywords, and abstract at the beginning. (All these elements must be included.) Create a hierarchical structure for the headings and then insert text, figure callouts, tables, equations, and references. Here are some basic guidelines:

  • Open a blank Word document.
  • Use the default styles in Word to identify the heading levels.
  • Use the standard Word functions for displayed lists and type styles such as bold or italics.
  • Use a single main font for the entire text, ideally Times New Roman 10 point.
  • For special characters, please use Symbol and/or Arial Unicode.

Your manuscript will be reformatted in production, so precise formatting of the manuscript file is not necessary. However, please be sure that the heading hierarchy is clear so that the proper heading levels are used.

For LaTeX users, Springer provides manuscript preparation tools that help structure the manuscript.

►LaTeX2e macro packages

Permissions

If excerpts from copyrighted works (including websites) such as illustrations, tables, animations, or text quotations are included in your manuscript, you must obtain permission from the copyright holder (usually the original publisher).

Please comply with the instructions stipulated in the permission(s) concerning acknowledgments or credit lines within your manuscript (e.g., reference to the copyright holder in captions) and keep the written confirmation of the permission in your possession with the copy of your manuscript.

Language

Either British, Australian, or American English can be used but be consistent within your paper.

Check for consistent spelling of names, terms, and abbreviations, including in tables and figure captions.

Paper Title and Authors

Indicate the corresponding author and include all authors’ names (spelled out as they would be cited), and affiliations (including mailing addresses and e-mail addresses). It is very important that correct details are provided for the corresponding author so that page proofs can be distributed and reviewed efficiently.

Abstract

Begin the paper with an abstract that summarizes the content in 150 to 250 words. The abstract will appear online at SpringerLink and be available with unrestricted access to facilitate online searching.

Don’t include reference citations or undefined abbreviations in the abstract because abstracts are often read independently of the actual paper and without access to the reference list.

Keywords

At least three keywords are required. Each keyword should not contain more than two compound words, and each keyword phrase should start with an uppercase letter. Chemical symbols are permitted.

When selecting the keywords, think of them as terms that will help someone locate your chapter at the top of the search engine list using, for example, Google. Very broad terms (e.g., ‘Case study’ by itself) should be avoided.

Headings and Heading Numbering

Heading levels should be clearly identified and each level should be uniquely and consistently formatted and/or numbered. Heading levels should be checked carefully in the page proofs to be sure the hierarchy in the formatted paper matches the manuscript.

Terminology, Units, and Abbreviations

Technical terms and abbreviations should be defined the first time they appear in the text.

Use internationally accepted signs and symbols for units (SI units).

Greek letters and other special characters should be added as special characters in the same font as the rest of the text.

Numerals should follow the British/American method of decimal points to indicate decimals and commas to separate thousands.

Formal Style

Manuscripts will be checked by a copy editor for formal style. Springer follows certain standards regarding the presentation of the content, and the copy editors make sure that the manuscript conforms to these styles.

Tips:

  • Italics should be used for emphasized words or phrases in running text, but do not format entire paragraphs in italics.
  • In addition, use italics for mathematical/physical variables and prefixes in chemical compounds.
  • Sans serif (e.g., Arial) and nonproportional font (e.g., Courier) can be used to distinguish the literal text of computer programs from running text.

Footnotes

Never use footnotes instead of a reference list. When notes are needed within the text, use footnotes instead of endnotes.

Footnotes should not consist of a reference citation. Footnotes should not contain figures, tables and/or the bibliographic details of a reference.

Equations and Program Code

In Word, use the Math function of Word 2007 or 2010, MathType, or Microsoft Equation Editor with Word 2003 to create your equations, and insert the graphic into your text file as an object.

In LaTeX, use the Math environment to create your equations.

Tables

Give each table a caption. Add a reference citation to the table source at the end of the caption, if necessary.

Number tables consecutively and ensure that all tables are cited in the text in sequential order.

Use the table function to create and format tables. Do not use the space bar or multiple tabs to separate columns and do not use Excel to create tables as this can cause problems when converting your tables into the typesetting program and other formats.

Tips:

  • Simple, one-column lists should not be treated as tables. Use the displayed list function instead.
  • Save the tables in the same file as text, references, and figure captions.
  • Do not manually insert table rules in the manuscript because they cannot be retained.

Figures and Illustrations

Numbering: Number the figures and ensure that all figures are cited in the text in sequential order.

Captions: Give each figure a concise caption, describing accurately what the figure depicts. Identify all elements found in the figure in the figure caption.

If a figure is reproduced from a previous publication, include the source as the last item in the caption.

File preparation: A figure is an object that is drawn or photographed. It does not consist solely of characters and thus cannot be keyed.

It is encouraged but not mandatory that all figures are provided as separate files compressed into a single .zip file, which can be uploaded along with your manuscript. If figures are not embedded in the text file, place a callout in the text where the figure should be inserted and include each caption at the end of the text file, not in the separate figure file.

If it is not possible to provide figures as separate files, embed the figures in the text exactly where they should appear and include a caption with each figure.

Graphics and diagrams should be saved as EPS files with the fonts embedded. Microsoft Office files (Excel or PowerPoint) can be submitted in the original format (xls, xlsx, ppt, pptx). Figures submitted as PDF files are not acceptable.

Scanned graphics in TIFF format should have a minimum resolution of 1200 dpi.

Photos or drawings with fine shading should be saved as TIFF with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi.

A combination of halftone and line art (e.g., photos containing line drawings or extensive lettering, color diagrams, etc.) should be saved as TIFF with a minimum resolution of 600 dpi.

Tips:

  • Ensure consistency by using similar sizing and lettering for similar figures. Ideally, you should size figures to fit in the page or column width.
  • To add lettering, it is best to use Helvetica or Arial (sans serif fonts) and avoid effects such as shading, outline letters, etc. Keep lettering consistently sized throughout your final-sized artwork. Variance of type size within an illustration should be minimal, e.g., do not use 8-pt type on an axis and 20-pt type for the axis label.

References

In-text citations: All text references should be consecutively numbered, using square brackets with the period after the reference; for example [1, 2].

Reference list: All papers must include a reference list that has all works that are cited in the chapter and that have been published (including on the Internet) or accepted for publication. Personal communications and unpublished works should only be mentioned in the text. Do not use footnotes as a substitute for a reference list.

Reference samples:

JOURNAL

Journal article (no issue number)
Lee EH, Mallet RL, Yang WH (1977) Stress and deformation analysis of the metal extrusion process. Comp. Method Appl. M. 10:339–353

Journal article (with issue number)
O’Mara J, Meredig B, Michel K (2016) Materials data infrastructure: a case study of the citrination platform to examine data import, storage, and access. JOM 68(8):2031–2034

Journal article with DOI (paginated)
Yan X, Liaw PK, Zhang Y (2021) Order and Disorder in Amorphous and High-Entropy Materials. Metall Mater Trans A 52(6):2111–2122. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-021-06250-4

Article in electronic journal by DOI (no paginated version)
Zecevic, M, Beyerlein, IJ, Knezevic, M (2016) Coupling elasto-plastic self-consistent crystal plasticity and implicit finite elements: Applications to compression, cyclic tension-compression, and bending to large strains. Int. J. Plast. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijplas.2016.07.016.

BOOK

Book chapter
Sørhuus, A, Ose S (2017) Pot gas treatment at high gas temperatures. In: Ratvik, AP (ed) Light metals 2017. The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, Pittsburgh; Springer, New York, p 495-500

Book, authored
Pehlke, RD (1973) Unit processes of extractive metallurgy. Elsevier, New York

Book, edited
Murr, LE (ed) (1985) Industrial materials science and engineering. Marcel Dekker, New York

OTHER SOURCES

Paper presented at a conference
Sun, QQ et al. (2012) Continuous casting simulation of 2304 duplex stainless steel via horizontal directional solidification technique. Paper presented at the 141st TMS Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida, 11–15 March 2012

Patent (name and date of patent are optional)
Hall, CM (1889) Process of reducing aluminium by electrolysis. US. Patent 400,766. 2 April 1889

Dissertation
Chen XR (2012) Thermal simulating of the continuous casting solidification process for S32205 duplex stainless steel. Ph.D. thesis, Shanghai University

Online document
Doe J (1999) Benzene. In: The dictionary of substances and their effects. Royal Society of Chemistry. http://www.rsc.org/images/dosesample_tcm18-23690.pdf. Accessed 6 July 2017

Manuscript Submission Checklist

  • Final title checked
  • All author names and affiliations included and checked for accuracy
  • Corresponding author indicated
  • E-mail address of corresponding author included
  • Abstract included
  • Keywords included
  • Text heading levels and special text elements consistently styled
  • No heading levels skipped
  • Reference list included
  • Citations in text agree with reference list
  • Figures consecutively numbered within chapter
  • Figures consecutively cited in text
  • Tables prepared with the table function
  • Tables consecutively numbered within chapter
  • Tables consecutively cited in text
  • Permissions obtained for all material from other work
  • Copyright form uploaded with manuscript