Nature Photonics

About Nature Photonics

Nature Photonics: Journal Overview

Nature Photonics is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Springer Nature (Nature Portfolio), headquartered in London, United Kingdom. The journal publishes what its editors describe as the best research from all areas of light generation, manipulation and detection — spanning the full breadth of photonics, from the fundamental physics of light and its interaction with matter through to optoelectronic devices and real-world applications that exploit photons (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

The journal is widely regarded as one of the leading specialist journals in optics and photonics. Its standing is reflected in its official citation metrics: according to the journal's metrics page, Nature Photonics carries a Journal Impact Factor of 38.1 (2025) with a 5-year Journal Impact Factor of 39.5 (2025), alongside an Article Influence Score of 11.987 (2025) — figures that place it among the most-cited journals in the optical sciences (source: nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact, accessed October 2026).

A distinctive feature of the journal is its dual character. In common with other Nature Research journals in the physical sciences, Nature Photonics publishes review articles, original research papers, News and Views pieces and research highlights summarising the latest scientific findings in optoelectronics. This is complemented by what the journal describes as a unique mix of articles dedicated to the business side of the industry, covering areas such as technology commercialisation and market analysis — editorial content that connects the research community with the photonics industry it serves (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

Like its sister Nature Research journals, Nature Photonics uses a professional editorial model: all editorial decisions are made by a team of full-time professional editors rather than an external editorial board, and editorial team members are based in offices across London, Madrid, Tokyo, Sydney and Beijing (sources: nature.com/nphoton/about; nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

History of Nature Photonics

Nature Photonics was launched in January 2007, during a period when the field of photonics was rapidly maturing from a specialist research discipline into a major enabling technology. As the journal's aims page notes, photonics — the scientific study and application of light — had evolved to become a key technology behind many devices found in the modern home, factory and research lab: fibre-optic communication, data storage, flat-panel displays and materials processing all rest on photonics (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

The founding Chief Editor, Oliver Graydon, joined Nature Photonics in January 2006 — a year before the first issue — bringing a decade of experience in scientific publishing. He had previously served as editor of the monthly magazine Opto & Laser Europe and its associated website Optics.org at the Institute of Physics Publishing, and holds a first-class degree in physics from Imperial College London and a PhD in optical communications from the Optoelectronics Research Centre at the University of Southampton (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

From its first issues, the journal positioned itself as the optics counterpart to flagship Nature Research titles in the physical sciences, such as Nature Physics. It combined selective peer review with magazine-style content — News and Views, research highlights, and industry-facing articles — a formula that has since become a hallmark of the Nature-branded research journals. Long-serving senior editors such as Noriaki Horiuchi (joined September 2009) and David Pile (joined November 2008) joined the team in the journal's first years and have shaped its editorial character for well over a decade (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Nearly two decades after launch, the journal continues to operate under the leadership of its founding Chief Editor and an expanded international editorial team, with its 2025 citation metrics (Impact Factor 38.1) confirming its position as a premier venue for photonics research (sources: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors; nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact).

Leadership and Editorial Team

The current Chief Editor of Nature Photonics is Oliver Graydon, PhD, who joined the journal in January 2006, ahead of its 2007 launch. He holds a first-class degree in physics from Imperial College London, a PhD in optical communications from the University of Southampton's Optoelectronics Research Centre, and is a fellow of Optica. He previously spent ten years in scientific publishing at the Institute of Physics Publishing, where he edited Opto & Laser Europe. He is based in the London office (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

He is supported by a team of senior editors with active research backgrounds in photonics and related fields:

• Jacopo Fregoni, PhD — joined in April 2026 after serving as an editor for Communications Physics; a former postdoctoral research fellow at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, with a PhD from the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia on light–molecule interactions in nanocavities. Based in the Madrid office (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).
• Noriaki Horiuchi, PhD — joined in September 2009; research interests in nonlinear optics, crystal growth and photonic crystals, with a PhD from Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, and earlier posts at RIKEN, the Toyota Technological Institute and Université Paris 6. Based in the Tokyo office (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).
• David Pile, PhD — joined in November 2008; background in theoretical and experimental research on linear and nonlinear bulk and guided waves, near-field and subwavelength optics, gratings, photonic crystals, slow light and metamaterials, with a PhD from Queensland University of Technology. Based in the Sydney office (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).
• Giampaolo Pitruzzello, PhD — joined in January 2022; research background in photonic crystals for sensing and imaging, photonic and electrochemical biosensors and metasurfaces, with a PhD from the University of York. Based in the Beijing office (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

The team also includes Associate Editor Anastasiia Vasylchenkova, PhD, who joined in November 2025 with a research background in telecommunication and nonlinear photonics (PhD in optical communications from Aston University, Birmingham), after editorial work on Communications Engineering and in the Nature Communications engineering team. She is based in London (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

As with other Nature Research journals, Nature Photonics has no external editorial board: all editorial decisions are made by this team of full-time professional editors, and the journal publishes the scientific backgrounds of its editors on its website (sources: nature.com/nphoton/about; nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Aims & Scope

According to the journal's official journal information page, Nature Photonics is "a monthly journal publishing the best research from all areas of light generation, manipulation and detection," with all editorial decisions made by a team of full-time professional editors (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

The journal's aims page frames photonics as both a Nobel-prize-winning science and a billion-dollar industry, and describes the journal as dedicated to that exciting field — publishing top-quality, peer-reviewed research across all areas of light generation, manipulation and detection. Coverage extends from research into the fundamental properties of light and how it interacts with matter, through to the latest designs of optoelectronic device and emerging applications that exploit photons (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

The journal's topic coverage, in paraphrased form, includes:

• Light sources — lasers, LEDs (light-emitting diodes) and other light sources
• Imaging, detectors and sensors
• Optoelectronic devices and components
• Novel materials and engineered structures
• Physics of light propagation, interaction and behaviour
• Quantum optics and cryptography
• Ultrafast photonics
• Biophotonics
• Optical data storage and spectroscopy
• Fibre optics and optical communications
• Solar energy and photovoltaics, and displays
• Terahertz technology, nonlinear optics, plasmonics and nanophotonics
• X-rays (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims)

Beyond research content, the journal publishes News and Views pieces and research highlights summarising the latest scientific findings in optoelectronics, plus the business-and-industry articles on technology commercialisation and market analysis that distinguish it from most research journals (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

Editorial Process and Peer Review

Nature Photonics follows the standard editorial workflow of the Nature Research journals, as described across the journal's "For Authors" pages. The process is handled entirely by the professional editorial team described above (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

How manuscripts are handled:

1. Presubmission enquiries. The journal accepts presubmission enquiries, so authors can check whether a manuscript is likely to interest the editors before preparing a full submission (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).
2. Initial editorial assessment. Every submitted manuscript is read by the editorial team. Papers that do not appear to meet the journal's selectivity criteria are declined promptly without external review, saving authors' and referees' time — standard practice across Nature Portfolio journals.
3. External peer review. Manuscripts judged to be of potential interest are sent for formal peer review. The journal also offers authors the option of double-anonymized peer review, in which author and reviewer identities are concealed from each other (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).
4. Editorial decision. Decisions are made by the professional editors based on reviewers' advice, with possible outcomes including acceptance, revision and re-review, or rejection. Authors may appeal against a decision or transfer their submission to another journal in the portfolio — transfer workflows can carry reviewer reports forward (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).

Speed. The journal publishes its own speed metrics on its metrics page: the median time from submission to first editorial decision is 18 days, and the median time from submission to acceptance is 208 days (source: nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact).

Policies. Authors are expected to read the journal's editorial policies — which cover issues such as authorship, competing interests, data availability and image integrity — before submitting. The journal supports the posting of preprints, and authors whose papers are sent for peer review are asked to read and sign the editorial policies (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).

Acceptance rate. Nature Photonics does not publish an official acceptance rate; the figure is not publicly disclosed on the journal's website.

Impact and Metrics

The following metrics are published on Nature Photonics' official journal metrics page (nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact, accessed October 2026). Years refer to the metric year as displayed by the journal.

Historical note: the journal's metrics page previously displayed a 2024 Journal Impact Factor of 32.9 (with a 5-year IF of 38.2); the current 2025 figures show a notable rise to 38.1 / 39.5. Metrics are updated annually — readers should always check the journal's official metrics page for the current values.

Springer Nature is a signatory of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), and the journal's metrics page notes that citation measures such as the 2-year Journal Impact Factor are not necessarily measures of journal quality — authors and readers are encouraged to consider a range of metrics (source: nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact).

Submission Guidelines

Nature Photonics' "For Authors" pages provide detailed instructions for prospective authors, and the journal recommends authors read them before submitting. Key points from the official guidance (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors):

• Submission portal: Manuscripts are submitted through the journal's online submission system (mts-nphot.nature.com); authors need an account and can register when submitting.
• Fit and content type: Authors are asked to check the journal's aims and scope and its accepted content types before initial submission, and to read the editorial policies.
• Presubmission enquiries: The journal accepts presubmission enquiries — a way to test editorial interest before investing in a full submission.
• Formatting for initial submission: The journal provides specific initial-formatting requirements; full formatting guidelines apply once an article is accepted in principle.
• Double-anonymized peer review: Authors can opt into double-anonymized peer review, subject to its stated requirements.
• Preprints: The journal's preprint policy allows prior posting of preprints.
• Publishing models and costs: Authors are expected to understand the publishing options (subscription vs. gold open access) and any associated costs before submitting (source: nature.com/nphoton/our-publishing-models).
• ORCID: Before final acceptance, corresponding authors are asked to link their ORCID identifier to their manuscript tracking account.
• Production: Once formally accepted, manuscripts are sent to Production to prepare for publication.

Manuscript length. The journal does not publish a single fixed word limit for initial submissions; authors should consult the content-type guidance and formatting instructions on the official For Authors pages.

Open Access and APC

Nature Photonics operates as a hybrid journal. As stated on the journal's official publishing-models page, authors submitting primary research articles may choose to publish their work either through the traditional subscription route or gold open access. Under gold open access, the article is made freely available online on publication, with an Article Processing Charge (APC) paid by the author's institution or funding body upon acceptance (source: nature.com/nphoton/our-publishing-models).

An important limitation: non-primary research articles — such as Reviews, Comments and News and Views — are not eligible for gold open access and can only be published via the traditional subscription route (source: nature.com/nphoton/our-publishing-models).

APC amount. The journal does not publish a fixed journal-specific APC figure on its open access pages; Springer Nature states that APCs are subject to VAT or local taxes where applicable. APC figures change over time, so prospective authors should verify current charges on the journal's official open access pages or through Springer Nature's open access support portal rather than relying on third-party listings.

Springer Nature offers institutional open access agreements that can cover publishing costs, and APC waiver/discount policies for corresponding authors based in the world's lowest income countries (for fully open access journals), with discretionary waiver requests for other authors considered on a case-by-case basis at the point of submission (source: nature.com open access support pages). The journal also advises authors with funder open access mandates (e.g., Plan S, NIH public access policy) to select the gold open access route (source: nature.com/nphoton/our-publishing-models).

Coverage Areas in Focus

Photonics underpins an unusually wide swathe of modern science and technology, and Nature Photonics' scope reflects that breadth. The topic areas below are the fields the journal explicitly lists in its aims and scope (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

Quantum optics and cryptography

The journal covers quantum optics and quantum cryptography — the science of generating, manipulating and detecting single photons and entangled states of light for fundamentally secure communication and for quantum information processing. This is one of the journal's flagship coverage areas, reflecting both the Nobel-recognised science of quantum optics and the race toward quantum networks.

Nanophotonics and plasmonics

Research into how light interacts with matter at the nanometre scale — including plasmonics (collective electron oscillations in metallic nanostructures), photonic crystals and metamaterials — is a core part of the journal's scope. These fields enable devices that confine light to dimensions far below its wavelength, with applications from ultra-compact modulators to super-resolution imaging.

Ultrafast photonics and nonlinear optics

The journal covers ultrafast photonics — the study and application of light pulses measured in femtoseconds and attoseconds — alongside nonlinear optics, the regime where intense light changes the optical properties of the materials it passes through. Senior editor Noriaki Horiuchi's background in nonlinear optics reflects the journal's strength in this area (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Biophotonics, imaging and sensors

Biophotonics — the application of light-based techniques to biology and medicine, from microscopy to optical biosensing — sits alongside imaging, detectors and sensors in the journal's scope. Associate and senior editors with biosensor and imaging research backgrounds (including Giampaolo Pitruzzello, whose postdoctoral work covered photonic and electrochemical biosensors) underscore the journal's engagement with this direction (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Fibre optics, optical communications and data storage

Fibre optics and optical communications — the backbone of global internet infrastructure — are central to the journal's coverage, along with optical data storage. The field traces directly back to the Chief Editor's own PhD work in optical communications, and the journal publishes both fundamental advances in transmission physics and device-level innovations (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Solar energy, photovoltaics and displays

The journal covers solar energy and photovoltaics, where photonics determines how efficiently sunlight is converted to electricity, as well as display technology, lasers, LEDs and other light sources, spectroscopy, terahertz technology and X-rays — rounding out a scope that runs from fundamental light–matter physics to consumer devices (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

The Nature Portfolio Family

Nature Photonics is part of Nature Portfolio, Springer Nature's family of journals. The portfolio includes the flagship multidisciplinary journal Nature, the open-access multidisciplinary journal Nature Communications, the Communications series (including Communications Physics, where senior editor Jacopo Fregoni previously served), dozens of Nature Reviews titles, and a large set of discipline-specific Nature-branded research journals such as Nature Physics (source: nature.com).

The portfolio model shapes editorial practice in several practical ways. Manuscripts declined by Nature Photonics may be offered transfer to a sister journal within the portfolio — the journal's For Authors pages explicitly cover appeals and transfers — with reviewer reports carried over where appropriate (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors). In turn, strong photonics papers of broader scope may be considered for the flagship Nature or Nature Communications, while more applied or engineering-oriented work can move toward titles such as Communications Engineering.

The journal's official abbreviation for abstracting and indexing purposes is Nat. Photon., its print ISSN is 1749-4885 and its electronic ISSN (EISSN) is 1749-4893 (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

Key Facts

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Nature Photonics?

Nature Photonics is a monthly peer-reviewed journal published by Springer Nature (Nature Portfolio) that publishes leading research from all areas of light generation, manipulation and detection. It is one of the most cited journals in optics and photonics (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

When was Nature Photonics launched?

The journal was launched in January 2007. Its founding Chief Editor, Oliver Graydon, joined the journal in January 2006 — a year before the first issue — and continues to lead it (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

What is the impact factor of Nature Photonics?

According to the journal's official metrics page, the Journal Impact Factor is 38.1 (2025), with a 5-year Impact Factor of 39.5 (2025). The 2024 Impact Factor was 32.9. Figures are updated annually — check nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact for the current values (source: nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact).

Who is the Chief Editor of Nature Photonics?

Oliver Graydon, PhD, a physicist by training (Imperial College London; PhD in optical communications from the University of Southampton), has been Chief Editor since before the journal's 2007 launch. He is supported by senior editors and an associate editor based in London, Madrid, Tokyo, Sydney and Beijing (source: nature.com/nphoton/about-the-editors).

Does Nature Photonics have an editorial board?

No. All editorial decisions are made by a team of full-time professional editors, and the journal publishes their scientific backgrounds on its website (source: nature.com/nphoton/about).

What topics does Nature Photonics cover?

The scope spans lasers and LEDs, imaging and sensors, optoelectronic devices, quantum optics and cryptography, ultrafast photonics, biophotonics, fibre optics and optical communications, solar energy and photovoltaics, displays, terahertz technology, nonlinear optics, plasmonics, nanophotonics, spectroscopy and X-rays (source: nature.com/nphoton/aims).

How does peer review work at Nature Photonics?

All manuscripts are first assessed by the editorial team; those of potential interest are sent for formal external peer review. Authors may opt for double-anonymized peer review. Decisions are made by the professional editors, and authors can appeal or transfer their manuscript to another portfolio journal (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).

How long does it take to get a decision?

The median time from submission to first editorial decision is 18 days, and the median time from submission to acceptance is 208 days (source: nature.com/nphoton/journal-impact).

Can I post my manuscript as a preprint before submitting?

Yes. The journal's official preprint policy allows prior posting of preprints (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).

Is Nature Photonics open access?

It is a hybrid journal. Authors of primary research articles can choose between the traditional subscription route and gold open access. Non-primary articles (Reviews, Comments, News and Views) are subscription-only and not eligible for gold open access (source: nature.com/nphoton/our-publishing-models).

What is the APC for Nature Photonics?

The journal does not publish a fixed journal-specific APC on its open access pages, and APC figures change over time. Prospective authors should verify the current charges on the journal's official open access pages or Springer Nature's open access support portal rather than relying on third-party figures.

Where can I submit to Nature Photonics?

Manuscripts are submitted through the journal's online submission system (mts-nphot.nature.com), linked from the official "For Authors" pages at nature.com/nphoton/for-authors. Presubmission enquiries are accepted and offer a way to check editorial interest before a full submission (source: nature.com/nphoton/for-authors).

Profile compiled October 2026 from official Nature Photonics and Springer Nature sources listed below (accessed 2026-10-11). Metrics, policies and editorial teams change over time — always verify current figures on the journal's official pages before citing or acting on them.