Physical Review A (PRA) publishes important developments in the rapidly evolving areas of atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) physics, quantum science, and related fundamental concepts.
Established in 1970, PRA is the journal of choice for the publication of research in AMO physics and quantum science. Bridging these traditional and emerging research areas, PRA’s authors and readers benefit from the widespread synergies between these fields. PRA coordinates with other members of the Physical Review family of journals to serve new subspecialties as they develop.
PRA publishes detailed research articles as well as Letters, which are short accessible papers of particular importance. The journal has a flexible approach to article lengths and welcomes submission of longer papers that provide depth and authority in their subject areas.
Like all of the journals in the Physical Review family, PRA is shaped by researchers to serve the research community. This commitment ensures that its mission and standards prioritize the needs of researchers and authors, not commercial publishing interests. The journal is international, with approximately four-fifths of published articles originating from outside the U.S. Physical Review’s reach is far and wide, with authors and referees from over 130 countries.
PRA covers atomic, molecular, and optical physics, foundations of quantum mechanics, and quantum science, including:
Submitted manuscripts should meet the following criteria:
At the core of APS's mission is a commitment to meeting the needs of physicists, a community that has been at the leading edge of open access. As a result, APS supports a variety of sustainable access options:
The PRA Editorial Board is a diverse, global group of active, distinguished scientists, selected by editors in consultation with APS units and appointed by the Executive Editor. Board members serve three-year terms. They may be requested by the editors to advise at any stage of the review process and they serve as adjudicators in formal appeals.
PRA is managed by a professional editorial team of Ph.D. scientists with extensive research experience at major academic institutions or research laboratories around the world. The team consists of both in-house and remote editors, who are active researchers in the array of topics published by the journal. All editorial decisions are based on PRA’s acceptance criteria.
PRA authors gain high visibility and achieve broad dissemination for their work in the journal of choice in AMO physics and quantum science. PRA editors bring attention to outstanding research and elucidate its importance through a number of features:
All Physical Review journals, including Reviews of Modern Physics, follow a common set of Editorial Policies and Practices, which cover Editorial Oversight and Decision Making, Authorship, Submissions, Resubmissions, and Transfers, Peer Review, Ethics and Research Integrity, Post Publication, and Open Access and Publications Rights.
PRA is published electronically one article at a time. The print version of the journal is published monthly. Articles are identified by volume number and a six digit article number, for example, Phys. Rev. A 61, 021013 (2000).