Progress in Natural Science:Materials International

Article structure

Subdivision-numbered sections

Divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ...), 1.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text'. Any subsection may be given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.

Introduction

State the objectives of the work and provide an adequate background, avoiding a detailed literature survey or a summary of the results.

Material and methods

Provide sufficient detail to allow the work to be reproduced. Methods already published should be indicated by a reference: only relevant modifications should be described.

Abstract

An abstract of 200 words or less should precede the introduction. The abstract should clearly indicate the nature of the manuscript and the results described therein.

A concise and factual abstract is required. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major message. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, References should be avoided, but if essential, they must be cited in full, without reference to the reference list. Also, abbreviations should be avoided, but if essential they must be defined at their first mention in the abstract itself.

Keywords

Immediately after the abstract, provide 5 keywords, avoid general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, "and", "of"). These terms should be relatively independent (coordinate index terms) and, as a group, should optimally characterize the paper. Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes. Use keywords that make your paper easy detectable for interested readers in literature databases. Repeating terms in the title is usually not needed.