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Publications

The IEEE Wireless Communications Letters (WCL) invites timely, short-length "Letter" articles on cutting-edge ideas and new results in the state-of-the-art of wireless communications. Both theoretical contributions (including new techniques, concepts, and analyses) and practical contributions (including system experiments, prototypes, and new applications) are encouraged. Material that has been previously copyrighted, published, or accepted for publication will not be considered for publication. Exceptions to this rule include items that have limited distribution, have appeared in Abstract form only, or have appeared only in conference proceedings. Authors are required to disclose such prior publication and briefly indicate how the new submission offers substantial novel contributions beyond the prior publication at the time of submission to this Journal. In most cases, a conference paper must be substantially revised to meet the technical standards maintained by the Journal. Manuscripts which are very similar and/or identical to a conference paper will not be considered. All manuscripts in letter format (letters) are reviewed by competent referees and are considered on the basis of their significance, novelty, and usefulness to the Journal readership. 

Attention: This Publication is a Hybrid Journal Allowing Either: 

  • Traditional manuscript submission
  • Open Access (author-pays OA) manuscript submission at the rate of US$2,495 per article, as of 1 January 2024.

The OA option, if selected, enables unrestricted public access to the article via IEEE Xplore. The OA option will be offered to the author at the time the manuscript is submitted. If selected, the OA fee must be paid before the article is published in the journal. If you have unusual circumstances about this, please contact the Editor-in-Chief. 

The traditional option, if selected, enables access to all qualified subscribers and purchasers via IEEE Xplore. No OA payment is required. 

The IEEE peer review standard of excellence is applied consistently to all submissions. All accepted articles will be included in the print issue mailed to subscribers. 

If you choose the OA option you should contact the IEEE Journals Coordinator, Sharon Nutter to insure that your paper will be classified correctly. 

ORCID

All IEEE publications require an Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) for all authors. ORCID is a persistent unique identifier for researchers and functions similarly to an article’s Digital Object Identifier (DOI). ORCIDs enable accurate attribution and improved discoverability of an author’s published work. To create an ORCID, please visit the ORCID website. The author will need a registered ORCID in order to submit a manuscript or review a proof in this journal.

Follow these steps to link a ScholarOne account to a registered ORCID:

  1. Login to ScholarOne and click on your name in the top right corner of the screen.
  2. Click E-mail / Name in the dropdown menu.
  3. In the ORCID section at the top of the page, click the appropriate link to either register for a new ORCID or associate the account with an existing ORCID.
  4. A new page will open to create and/or validate your ORCID. Once the validation is complete, the new page will close and you will return to ScholarOne.
  5. Save the changes to your ScholarOne user account.

Authors who do not have an ORCID in their ScholarOne user account will be prompted to provide one during submission.

For more information on ORCID please visit the IEEE Support Center

Submission Format

Letters must be concisely written and no longer than the 5-page limit (see Page Charge Policy below) in IEEE standard print format (10-point single-spaced double-column version) using the IEEE style files, including title; names of authors and their complete contact information; abstract; text; all figures and tables; and all references. A manuscript should be accompanied by a 75- to 100-word abstract clearly outlining the scope and contributions of the letter and by index terms. Authors are required to upload the manuscript in double-spaced single-column format as a PDF and also the single-spaced double-column version of the manuscript at the time of submission. Submitted Letters exceeding these guidelines will be returned to the authors for revision before being reviewed. 

All letters must be written in English. Introductory discussion should be kept to a minimum, and material published elsewhere should be referenced rather than reproduced or paraphrased. Authors should strive for maximum clarity of expression, bearing in mind that the purpose of publications dissemination of technical knowledge and that an excessively complex or poorly written presentation can only obscure the significance of the work described. Care should be taken in the organization of the letter, such that a logical and consistent progression of thought is evident. It is strongly suggested that material which is not essential to the continuity of the text (e.g., proofs, derivations, and calculations) be placed in Appendices. Authors with language difficulties should, whenever possible, obtain the assistance of a colleague fluent in English before submitting a manuscript for publication. 

The format of letters submitted to WCL should follow IEEE editorial and typographical standards, as described in "Information for IEEE Authors", which is available from the IEEE Transactions/Journal Department, 445 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08855-1331 or email trans@ieee.org or fax 732-562-0545. 

You may find the templates that can be used for the ComSoc journals at IEEE Author Center website.

Graphical Abstract: 

To enhance the appearance of your article on IEEEXplore®, a graphical abstract can be displayed along with traditional text. The graphical abstract should provide a clear, visual summary of your article’s findings by means of an image, animation, video, or audio clip. 

NOTE: The graphical abstract is considered a part of the technical content of the article, and you must provide it for peer review during the article submission process. 

For more information about graphical abstracts and their specifications, please visit IEEE Author Center website.

Electronic Submission

The IEEE Wireless Communications Letters (WCL) requires that authors submit their manuscripts to the on-line submission system ScholarOne Manuscripts via the WCL Manuscript Central website. Please be advised that the WCL website has been in place to accept submissions since September 1st, 2011. Authors are requested to upload PDF versions of all items in the reference list which are not publicly available, such as unpublished (submitted) papers. Do not send original submissions or revisions directly to the Editor-in-Chief or Editors; they will access the manuscripts electronically at the ScholarOne Manuscripts system. 

The site is self instructing and quite easy to use. The first time that an author uses it, he/she will be asked to create an account. However, after that one can simply log in. Manuscripts will be accepted in either Postscript or PDF format (If possible, it will be best that PDF files be submitted). When printed, the manuscript must satisfy the page limit guidelines noted in the "Submission Format" above. Manuscripts that fail to comply with these guidelines will be deleted without acknowledgment and not processed further. Supplemental material, such as original drawings and figures, will be requested when the final files on your accepted paper are submitted. 

Users who have questions can reach the editorial assistant.

Time Frame for Paper Revision

As WCL is committed to the timely publication of short-length and high-quality letter articles, the result of the review process ends with an acceptance (with minor revision) or rejection of the letter; authors will not be asked to make any major revisions. Instead, authors will be asked to revise their letters within a short revision time, typically 21 days. All revised manuscripts must be returned to the reviewing Editor within the revision time, unless a special extension is obtained from the Editor. 

For those letters rejected with resubmission allowed, the revised manuscripts must be resubmitted within 60 days. Please be advised that the Editorial Office will not accept any resubmission after 60 days have elapsed, unless a special extension is obtained from the editor. 

Submission of Final Materials

The IEEE Wireless Communications Letters (WCL) starts instituting a new production workflow for WCL that will significantly shorten the publishing cycle. All authors, whose letters are accepted for publication in our journal, will be requested to submit their final materials in TeX or LaTeX or Word, a PDF file of the complete letter along with the original drawn figures in .eps format. Following the  instructions as given in the acceptance letter, the authors must submit their final materials through the “awaiting final files” queue in your author center on Manuscript Central within TWO WEEKS from the date of acceptance letter. 

IEEE Copyright Form

All authors must sign and submit a completed IEEE Copyright and Consent Form prior to publication by the IEEE and must have company clearance for submission. Submitted letters are assumed to contain no proprietary material unprotected by patent or patent application. Responsibility for technical content and for protection of proprietary material rests solely with the author(s) and their organizations and is not the responsibility of the IEEE or its editorial staff. The IEEE recommends authors to use an effective electronic copyright form (ECF) tool within the ScholarOne Manuscripts system. You will be required to complete the "IEEE Electronic Copyright Form" after the final files on your accepted paper are submitted; please simply sign the ECF by typing your name at the proper location and click on the "Submit" button, via a link next to your accepted paper. 

Page Charge Policy

Letters not exceeding 4 printed pages will not incur page charges. 5-page letters will incur an over-length charge of US$220

Policy on Self-Plagiarism

IEEE Publications has long maintained the policy that verbatim copying of another's work (plagiarism) is unacceptable author conduct. 

The IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) values the intellectual contributions of its authors, and vigorously enforces the IEEE policy on plagiarism. As the IEEE modifies its publication policies, it is important that authors who submit their work to IEEE ComSoc journals and magazines are informed of these changes. 

In November 2002, the IEEE Board of Directors approved a new policy on Duplicate Publication and Self-Plagiarism. This policy is found in the IEEE Policies document, Sections 6.4.1B(f) and 6.4.1B(h). These two sections are given below. 

(f) Plagiarism is unacceptable. The verbatim copying or reuse of one's own research (as indicated in paragraph below) is considered another form of plagiarism or self-plagiarism; it is unacceptable. 

(h) Except as indicated in Section 6.3.4 (Multiple Publication of Original Technical Material in IEEE Periodicals), authors should only submit original work that has neither appeared elsewhere for publication, nor which is under review for another referred publication. If authors have used their own previously published work(s) as a basis for a new submission, they are required to cite the previous work(s) and very briefly indicate how the new submission offers substantial novel contributions beyond those of the previously published work(s).

In addition to the IEEE policy, the ComSoc Board of Governors approved a rule that allows IEEE ComSoc to ban authors from ComSoc publications for a minimum of 6 months for double-publishing, i.e., submitting the same manuscript to two different journals and/or plagiarism.  

Electronic Posting Policy

Author submitting manuscripts for review to ComSoc publications should be aware of the IEEE policy on "Electronic Preprints". The policy particularly applies to authors who post part or all of a submitted manuscript on a Web site. This policy is found in the Publication Services and Products Board (PSPB) Operations Manual, in Section 8.1.9D, that is, 
Electronic Preprints. Upon submission of an article to the IEEE for review and possible publication, the author must add the following notice to the first screen of any of his/her previously posted electronic preprint versions of the paper. “This work has been submitted to the IEEE for possible publication. Copyright may be transferred without notice, after which this version may no longer be accessible.” 

When the IEEE accepts the work for publication, the author must add the IEEE copyright notice shown in Section 8.1.9B above to any previously posted electronic version of the particular paper submitted and provide the IEEE with the electronic address (URL, ftp address, etc.) of the primary electronic posting. 

When IEEE publishes the work, the author must replace the previous electronic version of the accepted paper with either (1) the full citation to the IEEE work or (2) the accepted version only (not the IEEE-published version), including the IEEE copyright notice and full citation. Prior to revised version of the paper must not be represented as the published version. 

Guidelines for Author Supplied Electronic Text and Graphics

English language editing services can help refine the language of your article and reduce the risk of rejection without review.  IEEE authors are eligible for a 10% discount at American Journal Experts; visit the American Journal Experts website to learn more. Please note these services are fee-based and do not guarantee acceptance.