NJC…a journal for new directions in chemistry

The Year of Chemistry 2011 will highlight the central role played by chemistry, which is implicated in a broad range of research areas, the fruit of collaborations with biologists, physicists, materials scientists, pharmacologists, geologists, medical doctors…

Since NJC began publishing in 1977 (as Nouveau Journal de Chimie), the journal has been a generalist chemistry journal. NJC has the vocation to continue being a generalist journal, publishing research work in all areas of chemistry.

On the eve of the Year of Chemistry in 2011, we, the Editors, feel that this is the optimum time to reformulate NJC's editorial policy. It has been over 6 years since our April 2004 Editorial entitled “Expectations for the quality and originality of submissions to NJC”, which set out the journal's editorial policy. During this period, the journal's impact factor has increased from 2.270 to 3.006.

In this Editorial, we wish to inform our authors, reviewers and readers of our requirements for the content and significance of submitted manuscripts.

Editorial policy

The editorial policy of NJC is to provide a forum for today's research in any area of chemistry, publishing work that has a strong chemistry component with a high degree of novelty. The journal also aims to promote interdisciplinary research by publishing contributions with a demonstrated potential to advance knowledge in chemistry or related fields.

For a manuscript to be accepted for publication in NJC, it must fulfil two key requirements. Firstly, the referees must rank it in the top 20% of papers in the field. Secondly, it must have a strong chemical component that opens up new directions in chemistry and/or fields at the interfaces with chemistry.

With its broad readership across the chemical spectrum, NJC offers the forum for multidisciplinary research at the crossroads between chemistry and related sciences.

The Editors seek submissions of general interest and of the highest quality. Papers reporting routine studies (in which no significant advance in chemical knowledge or understanding is obtained) or follow-up papers that are more appropriate to specialised journals will not be considered by NJC. Authors are asked to emphasise their significant findings with objective discussion and specific comparison to what has previously been published, and to comment on the significance of their findings to the wider community.

We, the undersigned, who are responsible for setting editorial policy and for taking decisions on publication, work closely both as a team and with our reviewers to ensure consistent standards, ensuring that we conform to the editorial policy detailed above.

NJC formats

NJC proposes four formats for the publication of original research and review articles, with short and long variants for each, as shown in Table 1.

Table 1 NJC formats

	Original research	Review
Short	Letter: maximum 4 pages	Focus: 6 pages
	Criteria: single message, limited data, short experimental	Criteria: highlights of a topic of current interest in chemistry
Long	Paper: 4+ pages	Perspective: 8+ pages
	Criteria: full report, complete experimental	Criteria: critical review of recent research in an area

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The original research formats (Papers and Letters) must adhere to the editorial policy outlined above concerning scope and quality.

In NJC Papers, authors provide full accounts of scientific investigations with all pertinent results.

NJC Letters report original results with limited data in support of a single message. They are not brief notes reporting routine or fragmented results.

Review articles are considered after invitation by one of the Editors or a member of the Editorial Board. Detailed guidelines are provided to authors when they accept the invitation to write a review.

NJC Perspectives provide a critical review, with perspectives for future research, of recent research on a selected research topic. The review can be focused on the author's own research, placing this in the context of the work of others and giving due recognition to all major players. Alternatively, it can be a broader examination of the chosen topic. In both cases, NJC Perspectives are not comprehensive compilations of all of the research in a field.

NJC Focus articles center on a specific topic, giving a personal view and a critical evaluation of the current state of knowledge. These short “mise au point” summarise the key results, the work currently being done, the challenges ahead and how the field is evolving.

Authors are hereby notified that Opinions are no longer being accepted and will not be published as of 2011.

Summary: NJC signposts for new directions

NJC…a journal for new directions in chemistry

We solicit innovative and cutting-edge reports of high quality and broad appeal that have a strong chemical component, as well as cross-disciplinary impact. Both experimental and theoretical works can be considered.

NJC is the forum for the publication of high-quality, original and significant work that opens new directions in chemistry or other scientific disciplines. In addition to having a significant chemical component, work published in NJC must demonstrate that it will have an impact on areas of research other than that of the reported work.

Both original research reports (Letter and Paper) and reviews (Focus and Perspective) will be published, though reviews will be upon invitation only.

To conclude, we, the Editors, acting on the directive of the Board, are committed to strengthening NJC as a generalist chemistry journal that publishes the most exciting science with far-reaching implications for chemistry and/or other fields. We ask you—our authors, reviewers and readers—to assist us in this endeavour: send us your best quality work, take into account the journal's editorial policy when reviewing manuscripts, and provide us with constructive feedback and comment. With your help, we can continue to develop NJC as a journal that authors are proud to publish in and that readers everywhere look forward to reading.

Jerry Atwood, co-Editor-in-Chief (Columbia, MO, USA)

Mir Wais Hosseini, co-Editor-in-Chief (Strasbourg, France)

Peter Junk, Associate Editor (Clayton, Victoria, Australia)

Michael Scott, Associate Editor (Gainesville, FL, USA)

Denise Parent, CNRS Managing Editor (Montpellier, France)

Sarah Ruthven, RSC Managing Editor (Cambridge, UK)

Marie Cote, CNRS Assistant Editor (Montpellier, France)

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