Aims and Scope

The European Physical Journal C (EPJ C) presents new and original research results in theoretical physics and experimental physics, in a variety of formats, including Regular Articles, Reviews, Tools for Experiment and Theory, Scientific Notes and Letters. The range of topics is extensive:

Experimental Physics I: Accelerator Based High-Energy Physics

• Hadron and lepton collider physics
• Lepton-nucleon scattering
• High-energy nuclear reactions
• Standard model precision tests
• Search for new physics beyond the standard model
• Heavy flavour physics
• Neutrino properties
• Particle detector developments
• Computational methods and analysis tools

Experimental Physics II: Astroparticle Physics

• Dark matter searches
• High-energy cosmic rays
• Double beta decay
• Long baseline neutrino experiments
• Neutrino astronomy
• Axions and other weakly interacting light particles
• Gravitational waves and observational cosmology
• Particle detector developments
• Computational methods and analysis tools

Theoretical Physics I: Phenomenology of the Standard Model and Beyond

• Electroweak interactions
• Quantum chromo dynamics
• Heavy quark physics and quark flavour mixing
• Neutrino physics
• Phenomenology of astro- and cosmoparticle physics
• Meson spectroscopy and non-perturbative QCD
• Low-energy effective field theories
• Lattice field theory
• High temperature QCD and heavy ion physics
• Phenomenology of supersymmetric extensions of the SM
• Phenomenology of non-supersymmetric extensions of the SM
• Model building and alternative models of electroweak symmetry breaking
• Flavour physics beyond the SM
• Computational Algorithms and Tools

Theoretical Physics II: Astroparticle Physics and Cosmology - Models and Phenomenology

• Theories of gravity
• Cosmology and the early universe
• Black hole (astro)physics
• Astroparticle physics
• Gravitational waves

Theoretical Physics III: Quantum Field Theory and Gravity - Fundamental and Formal Aspects

• Quantum field theories and High Energy Physics
• Quantum theory of gravitation
• Supergravity and string theory
• Gauge/gravity dualities
• Black hole dynamics
• Mathematical relativity

Article Categories

Letters:

Must describe new and original work deserving rapid publication. Their aim is fast and concise communication of material of current interest:

• an important theoretical, computational or experimental result
• a valuable discussion of, or a short essay on, an open scientific issue
• a valuable presentation of innovative and promising ideas and concepts

in the fields covered by the journal. In order to make a fast refereeing and decision procedure possible, and to address a broad readership, Letters should not exceed 4 printed pages in the EPJ style format, and should contain no more than 4 figures and/or tables.

Regular Articles:

Describe original work, or provide details of original work previously published in a Letter article. There is no general limitation of the overall size nor of the number of figures, nor of the level of details considered to be necessary.

Tools for Experiment and Theory/Scientific Notes:

Are articles presenting original and new developments of particle detectors, readout electronics, computational methods or analysis tools. Direct relevance to physics topics within the "Aims and Scopes" must be demonstrated.

An important subgroup are Scientific Notes, typically based on internal notes of experimental collaborations, detailing specific aspects of importance for understanding and assessing the physics results presented in large collaboration papers.

Technical details down to the level of construction drawings, electronic circuit diagrams or computer codes should not be included but may be added as electronic-only supplementary material.

Reviews:

Are by invitation only through the Editorial Board. There is no general limit to the overall length -- they may contain, but should not be restricted to, original work. Reviews will fall into one of the following categories:

1) Comprehensive reviews of major topics within the "Aims and Scope" of EPJA and EPJC. Their primary assets will be pedagogical exposition, synthesis of key developments, and the inclusion of a definitive and representative bibliography.

2) Technical papers presenting an extensive review of a specialist topic within the "Aims and Scope".

3) Reviews of a newly emerging field, providing an up-to-date synthesis and an extended discussion of the open questions. The discussion is expected to lead to an assessment of the possible further developments within the field, potentially making a substantial contribution to guiding decisions concerning the planning or running of experimental and observational facilities.

4) Outstanding thesis or working reports, the richness and importance of whose details justify the exceptional publication of the full length work.

Comments and Replies:

Comments and Replies include discussion and commentary addressing significant aspects of the original paper but without a) representing essentially new papers, b) delving into too much detail, or c) becoming personal. They should address non-trivial aspects that will interest readers other than the authors of the comment and the original paper. They should not exceed two printed pages in the EPJ format and should not include an abstract. Authors should include a cover letter to explain the relevance and general interest of the Comment/Reply.