Publication Ethics

1. Purpose and Scope

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications (JMA) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity, transparency, originality, accountability, and ethical responsibility in scholarly publishing. The journal aims to promote trustworthy scientific research in magnetism, magnetic materials, applied physics, electromagnetic phenomena, magnetic technologies, and related interdisciplinary applications.

This Publication Ethics Policy applies to all manuscripts submitted to or published in the journal, including original research articles, review articles, theoretical investigations, experimental studies, computational research, and other scholarly contributions.

The policy establishes the ethical responsibilities of authors, reviewers, editors, editorial board members, and the publisher. The journal follows internationally recognised principles of publication ethics and uses relevant guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) when addressing ethical concerns and publication misconduct.

2. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to the Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications must ensure that their research is original, scientifically valid, accurately presented, and conducted according to applicable ethical standards.

Authors are responsible for:

• Submitting original work that has not been published previously or simultaneously submitted to another journal.

• Presenting research objectives, methodologies, experimental procedures, calculations, results, and conclusions accurately.

• Avoiding fabrication, falsification, selective reporting, or inappropriate manipulation of research data.

• Providing sufficient methodological information to enable scientific evaluation and reproducibility.

• Properly acknowledging previous research, scientific theories, experimental techniques, and relevant sources.

• Disclosing financial support, research sponsorship, institutional relationships, and potential conflicts of interest.

• Obtaining the necessary permissions for copyrighted materials, images, figures, tables, and datasets.

• Ensuring compliance with applicable laboratory safety, institutional ethics, and research regulations.

• Cooperating with editorial assessments, peer-review procedures, and investigations into possible misconduct.

• Promptly informing the Editor when significant errors are discovered before or after publication.

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, reliability, and integrity of their published research.

3. Authorship and Contributorship

Authorship must accurately reflect substantial intellectual or scientific contributions to the research.

Individuals listed as authors should have contributed meaningfully to one or more important aspects of the study, including research conception, experimental design, theoretical development, computational modelling, data analysis, interpretation, or manuscript preparation.

All listed authors must approve the submitted and final versions of the manuscript and accept accountability for their contributions.

The journal prohibits:

• Guest or honorary authorship.

• Gift or purchased authorship.

• Omission of eligible contributors.

• Inclusion of individuals without their consent.

• Misrepresentation of individual research contributions.

Individuals providing technical assistance, laboratory support, administrative services, or other contributions that do not qualify for authorship should be acknowledged appropriately.

The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all authors approve the manuscript and are informed of relevant editorial decisions.

Any request to add, remove, or rearrange authors after submission must include a reasonable explanation and written agreement from all affected authors. Authorship changes after publication may require a formal correction.

4. Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications recognises that artificial intelligence and computational technologies may support scientific research, manuscript preparation, data analysis, and technical investigations.

Authors must maintain transparency and accountability when using artificial intelligence tools.

Artificial intelligence systems must not be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility for scholarly content.

Authors must disclose substantial use of generative artificial intelligence in manuscript writing, image generation, data interpretation, computational analysis, or other research activities where such use is relevant to evaluating the work.

Artificial intelligence tools must not be used to:

• Fabricate experimental observations or numerical results.

• Generate fictitious references or citations.

• Manipulate scientific images or research findings deceptively.

• Create misleading representations of magnetic structures, simulations, measurements, or experimental outcomes.

• Conceal plagiarism or duplicate publication.

Authors are responsible for independently verifying AI-assisted content and ensuring that research conclusions are supported by reliable scientific evidence.

5. Originality, Plagiarism, and Duplicate Publication

All manuscripts must demonstrate originality and provide a genuine contribution to scientific knowledge.

The journal does not permit plagiarism, self-plagiarism, redundant publication, duplicate submission, data fabrication, citation manipulation, or the unauthorised reproduction of copyrighted material.

Examples of unacceptable practices include:

• Copying previously published scientific text without appropriate attribution.

• Reproducing experimental results or datasets without disclosure.

• Republishing substantially identical research under different titles.

• Presenting previously published simulations, figures, or measurements as new findings.

• Using another researcher's theoretical model or experimental methodology without proper acknowledgement.

• Dividing a single research project into multiple publications without adequate scientific justification or transparency.

Manuscripts may undergo similarity screening and editorial assessment to identify possible plagiarism and inappropriate text overlap.

Similarity percentages must be interpreted in context. Editorial decisions consider the nature, source, extent, and significance of matching material rather than relying solely on a numerical similarity score.

Manuscripts involving serious ethical violations may be rejected. Misconduct identified after publication may result in correction, expression of concern, or retraction.

6. Research Data Integrity and Reproducibility

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications considers research-data integrity essential for reliable scientific communication.

Authors must report experimental observations, theoretical calculations, computational simulations, numerical models, and statistical analyses accurately.

Research involving magnetic properties, electromagnetic measurements, material characterisation, magnetic-field simulations, nanomagnetic systems, or related scientific investigations should describe the methodology sufficiently to enable independent evaluation.

Where relevant, authors should provide:

• Experimental equipment and measurement procedures.

• Material preparation and sample-characterisation methods.

• Calibration procedures and measurement conditions.

• Mathematical assumptions and governing equations.

• Computational software and simulation parameters.

• Statistical methods and uncertainty estimates.

• Relevant supporting data, figures, and calculations.

Authors must not fabricate, falsify, selectively suppress, or manipulate scientific results in a way that misrepresents the research.

The editorial team may request original measurements, experimental records, simulation outputs, datasets, or other supporting information when necessary to assess research reliability.

Authors should retain relevant research records for an appropriate period and make supporting data available where ethically, legally, and practically possible.

Legitimate restrictions relating to intellectual property, confidentiality, commercial sensitivity, security, or legal requirements must be explained appropriately.

7. Ethical Oversight and Research Compliance

All research submitted to the journal must comply with applicable institutional, national, and international research requirements.

Research involving physical experiments, magnetic-field generation, electromagnetic equipment, hazardous materials, advanced laboratory instruments, or other potentially dangerous scientific procedures must follow appropriate safety protocols.

Authors should ensure compliance with applicable requirements relating to:

• Laboratory and occupational safety.

• Electromagnetic-field exposure and equipment operation.

• Chemical and material handling.

• Environmental protection and waste management.

• Institutional research approvals.

• Research involving human participants or animals, where applicable.

• Confidentiality and data protection.

Studies involving human participants or animals must provide appropriate ethical approval and consent information where required.

Authors must not present research conducted without legally or ethically required authorisation as compliant research.

8. Conflicts of Interest and Funding Disclosure

Authors, reviewers, and editors must disclose any financial, personal, academic, institutional, or professional relationships that could influence, or reasonably appear to influence, their scientific judgement.

Potential conflicts of interest may include employment relationships, consultancy agreements, financial investments, intellectual property interests, research sponsorship, personal relationships, or academic competition.

Authors must disclose funding sources and describe the role of research sponsors where relevant.

Financial support must not compromise the independence of scientific research or the integrity of published findings.

Editorial decisions must be based on academic merit, research quality, scientific validity, relevance, and ethical compliance rather than payment arrangements, institutional influence, or professional relationships.

Where no conflict of interest or external funding exists, authors should provide an appropriate declaration.

9. Responsibilities of Reviewers

Peer reviewers play an important role in evaluating the scientific quality, originality, methodological reliability, and relevance of submitted manuscripts.

Reviewers are expected to:

• Evaluate manuscripts objectively, fairly, and professionally.

• Assess the scientific validity of experimental methods, theoretical models, calculations, and conclusions.

• Provide constructive and evidence-based feedback.

• Maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and review communications.

• Declare conflicts of interest before undertaking a review.

• Decline invitations where adequate subject expertise or availability is lacking.

• Identify significant methodological weaknesses or unsupported conclusions.

• Inform the Editor about suspected plagiarism, manipulated findings, duplicate publication, or other misconduct.

• Respect the intellectual property and unpublished research ideas of authors.

Reviewers must not use unpublished manuscript information for personal research, commercial advantage, or professional benefit.

Manuscripts must not be shared with unauthorised individuals or uploaded to external services without editorial permission and appropriate confidentiality safeguards.

Reviewers must not contact authors directly regarding the evaluation unless authorised by the Editor.

10. Responsibilities of Editors

Editors are responsible for ensuring that publication decisions are fair, independent, evidence-based, and consistent with the journal's editorial standards.

Editorial responsibilities include:

• Assessing manuscripts according to scientific merit, originality, methodological quality, and relevance to the journal's scope.

• Selecting independent reviewers with appropriate subject expertise.

• Protecting the confidentiality of submitted manuscripts and reviewer reports.

• Managing conflicts of interest appropriately.

• Ensuring fair editorial treatment regardless of nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, religion, professional status, or financial circumstances.

• Investigating credible allegations of research misconduct.

• Maintaining independence from commercial, institutional, and personal pressures.

• Taking appropriate action when published research requires correction or retraction.

Editors must not participate in editorial decisions concerning manuscripts where they have an actual or potential conflict of interest.

Manuscripts submitted by editors or editorial board members must be managed independently by another qualified editor.

The Editor-in-Chief has responsibility for maintaining the integrity and academic credibility of the journal's editorial process.

11. Confidentiality

All submitted manuscripts, reviewer reports, editorial communications, supporting materials, and misconduct investigations must be treated as confidential.

Editors, reviewers, and editorial personnel must not disclose unpublished research information to unauthorised parties.

Confidential information may be shared only when reasonably necessary for legitimate editorial purposes, ethical investigations, institutional enquiries, professional advice, or compliance with applicable legal requirements.

Personal information collected through the journal's submission and publication systems must be handled in accordance with the journal's applicable privacy requirements.

12. Allegations of Research and Publication Misconduct

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications takes allegations of scientific and publication misconduct seriously.

Potential misconduct includes:

• Plagiarism and duplicate publication.

• Fabrication or falsification of experimental data.

• Manipulation of scientific images, graphs, or simulations.

• Misrepresentation of magnetic measurements or computational findings.

• Deliberate omission of significant contradictory evidence.

• Authorship and citation manipulation.

• Undisclosed conflicts of interest.

• Peer-review manipulation.

• Misappropriation of unpublished research.

• Serious violations of applicable research ethics and safety requirements.

Allegations should be submitted through the journal's official editorial contact channel with relevant supporting evidence.

When a credible concern is received, the journal may:

1. Conduct a preliminary confidential assessment.

2. Examine relevant manuscript or publication records.

3. Request explanations from the individuals concerned.

4. Request raw data, experimental records, research approvals, or supporting documentation.

5. Obtain independent scientific or ethical advice.

6. Contact an appropriate research institution or authority when further investigation is required.

7. Take editorial action according to the available evidence.

Investigations must be conducted fairly, confidentially, and without unnecessary delay.

Individuals raising concerns in good faith should be protected from retaliation as far as reasonably and legally possible.

13. Complaints and Appeals

The journal recognises the right of authors, reviewers, readers, and other interested parties to raise legitimate concerns regarding editorial procedures and published research.

Complaints may concern:

• Editorial conduct or procedural fairness.

• Peer-review quality or reviewer behaviour.

• Unreasonable editorial delays.

• Potential conflicts of interest.

• Research misconduct or publication ethics.

• Errors in published scientific content.

• Failure to follow a published journal policy.

Complaints should be submitted in writing through the official journal contact channel and should include relevant manuscript details and supporting information.

Authors may appeal editorial decisions where they believe that a significant factual error, procedural irregularity, unmanaged conflict of interest, or misunderstanding materially affected the decision.

Appeals must present clear grounds and relevant evidence. Mere disagreement with reviewer comments or an editorial decision is not sufficient.

Where reasonably possible, an appeal should be reviewed by an editor who was not directly responsible for the original decision.

Complaints involving the Editor-in-Chief should be referred to the publisher or another appropriately independent authority.

Submitting an appeal does not guarantee a change in the editorial decision.

14. Corrections, Retractions, and Expressions of Concern

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications is committed to maintaining an accurate, transparent, and reliable scholarly record.

Corrections

A correction may be issued when an otherwise reliable published article contains an error requiring formal clarification.

Such errors may involve numerical calculations, experimental parameters, data presentation, author information, figures, tables, or other relevant scientific details.

Correction notices should identify the original publication, explain the changes, and remain accessible to readers.

Expressions of Concern

An expression of concern may be issued when serious questions arise regarding the reliability or ethical status of published research but available evidence is insufficient to determine whether retraction is appropriate.

This may occur when an institutional investigation is pending or significant uncertainty remains unresolved.

Retractions

A published article may be retracted when reliable evidence demonstrates that its findings are seriously unreliable or that significant publication misconduct has occurred.

Grounds may include:

• Fabricated or falsified experimental data.

• Seriously misleading computational or theoretical findings.

• Major scientific errors invalidating the principal conclusions.

• Serious plagiarism or unauthorised duplicate publication.

• Manipulated peer review.

• Fraudulent authorship or unethical research practices.

Retraction notices should explain the reason, identify the affected article, and be linked to the original publication.

Retracted articles should normally remain accessible with a clear retraction indication to preserve the transparency of the scholarly record.

Complete removal of published content should occur only in exceptional circumstances involving significant legal, privacy, security, or safety concerns.

15. Post-Publication Discussion

The journal supports responsible academic discussion, scientific criticism, and evidence-based evaluation of published research.

Readers and researchers may raise questions concerning experimental findings, theoretical interpretations, computational methods, scientific reproducibility, or other relevant aspects of published articles.

Post-publication comments should be professional, scientifically justified, and supported by appropriate evidence.

When necessary, the editorial team may invite author responses, request independent scientific assessments, publish clarifications, issue corrections, or initiate further ethical review.

Constructive academic criticism must be considered on its scientific merits.

16. Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Permissions

Authors must respect intellectual property rights and acknowledge the scientific contributions of other researchers.

Proper attribution is required when using previously published text, mathematical models, figures, diagrams, datasets, experimental methods, illustrations, or other protected materials.

Authors are responsible for securing necessary permissions to reproduce third-party copyrighted material where no applicable legal exception or licence permits reuse.

Copyright ownership, publication rights, and permissions for redistribution or reuse are governed by the journal's published Copyright and Licensing Policy and the licence applicable to each article.

Authors must ensure that submitted material does not infringe the intellectual property rights of other individuals, institutions, or publishers.

Allegations of copyright infringement will be examined through appropriate editorial procedures.

17. Sanctions for Ethical Violations

When research or publication misconduct is established, the journal may take proportionate action according to the seriousness of the violation and the available evidence.

Possible actions include:

• Requesting clarification or manuscript correction.

• Rejecting the submitted manuscript.

• Suspending editorial assessment while a concern is investigated.

• Withdrawing an acceptance decision where justified.

• Publishing a formal correction or expression of concern.

• Retracting a published article.

• Restricting future submissions for a defined period where justified.

• Informing relevant research institutions, funding organisations, or appropriate authorities.

• Taking other reasonable measures to safeguard the scholarly record.

All decisions must consider fairness, transparency, the severity of misconduct, and the responsibilities of the individuals involved.

18. Policy Review and Updates

The Journal of Magnetism and Its Applications may periodically review and update its Publication Ethics Policy to reflect developments in scholarly publishing standards, scientific research practices, ethical guidance, legal requirements, and editorial procedures.

The journal remains committed to promoting scientific integrity, responsible authorship, transparent editorial decision-making, reliable peer review, and public confidence in published research.