University of Wisconsin Economics Journals: 1997

25 Most Cost-Effective Titles by Cost/Impact Factor Measure

Ascending Order

Most Cost-Effective Physics Journals Publisher Publisher Type Institutional Subscription Cost: 1997 Cost /Impact Factor*
Reviews of Modern Physics American Physical Society Non-Profit 360.00 0.198
Astrophysical Journal and Letters American Astronomical Society Non-Profit 1050.00 0.235
Physics Today American Institute of Physics Non-Profit 155.00 0.334
Physical Review Letters American Physical Society Non-Profit 1970.00 0.432
Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series American Astronomical Society Non-Profit 200.00 0.452
Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics Annual Review Inc. Commercial 140.00 0.491
Physical Review D American Physical Society Non-Profit 2130.00 0.519
Annual Review of Nuclear and Particle Science Annual Review Inc. Commercial 70.00 0.527
Physical Review E American Physical Society Non-Profit 1270.00 0.535
Physical Review B American Physical Society Non-Profit 4130.00 0.599
Journal of Chemical Physics American Institute of Physics Non-Profit 3175.00 0.608
Applied Physics Letters American Institute of Physics Non-Profit 1400.00 0.840
Physical Review A American Physical Society Non-Profit 1430.00 0.854
Journal of Geophysical Research Ð Space Physics American Geophysical Union Non-Profit 862.00 0.888
Journal of the Physical Society of Japan - and supplement Physical Society of Japan Non-Profit 648.83 1.010
Journal of Applied Physics American Institute of Physics Non-Profit 2185.00 1.129
Physical Review C American Physical Society Non-Profit 1160.00 1.200
Astronomy and Astrophysics Springer Commercial 2976.00 1.357
IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Science Society Non-Profit 375.00 1.439
Japanese Journal of Applied Physics - parts I-II Japanese Society of Applied Physics Non-Profit 1250.00 1.667
Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B American Vacuum Society Non-Profit 670.00 1.717
Journal of the Optical Society of America B Optical Society of America Non-Profit 837.00 1.728
Physics Reports North-Holland Commercial 3725.00 1.758
Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology A American Vacuum Society Non-Profit 670.00 1.900
Journal of the Optical Society of America A Optical Society of America Non-Profit 837.00 2.113

 

Analyzing its 1997 subscription list, the University of Wisconsin found that the most cost-effective journals in Physics tended to be those published by Non-Profit publishers. This table presents the 25 most cost-effective Physics journals in the Wisconsin subscription list, as measured by the Cost/Impact Factor*. Only four of the journals were published by commercial publishers.

 

 

*Cost/Impact Factor has been used as one way of measuring the cost-effectiveness of journals. It relates the cost of a journal to its impact as measured by its citation record. It is derived by dividing the Cost per 1000 Characters by the ISI Impact Factor. Here is an example for the Reviews of Modern Physics.

Cost per 1000 characters = 4.0 cents.
ISI Impact Factor = 20.208
4.0/20.208 = 0.198
Cost/Impact Factor = 0.198

An Impact Factor of 20.208 is very high—the highest for all the journals in the Physics sample. So, though the cost of Reviews of Modern Physics is not among the lowest for Physics, its high frequency of citation combined with its modest cost makes it the most cost-effective journal in the Wisconsin list. The lower the Cost/Impact Factor, the more cost-effective the journal is, according to this measure.