Basic Elements of IEEE reference style

IEEE's role in referencing and citation is important because IEEE is one of the most widely used systems for classifying and indexing scientific and technical articles. There are two types of referencing systems in the IEEE referencing format.

1. In-text source citation to directly or indirectly quote and credit the work of other researchers
2. References: a list of all the works cited in the research project

Short quotations from either primary or secondary sources are known as in-text citations. In IEEE, these citations are placed in square brackets and numbered. Each number next to the citation corresponds with a complete citation that can be found listed numerically in the References section (this is also called the Works Cited list or bibliography page in other formats. APA refers to this section as references.)

IEEE General Format Guidelines

The general guidelines will allow you to grasp the basics, and then we will cover each portion of the paper.

• The accepted type (font) is Times, New Roman.
• The body text should be 10 points in Times New Roman
• The Title must be centre aligned at the top of the page with 24 point font size
• The byline comes directly after the title. Add a line break after the title and write the byline in 10 points font size. The byline will contain the following items in separate lines
  • Author/Authors Names
  • Affiliations of Author
  • Location (City, Country, Province etc.)
  • Email Address(es)
• Format the text in two columns
• Always include the abstract at the start of the research paper
• Include index terms and keywords after the abstract
• Divide the paper into a heading, subheading, tertiary or quaternary headings as per requirements
• Tables, figures, equations and diagrams should be numbered and centre aligned to the column
• Your paper can include the following depending on the requirement of your paper
  • Note to Practitioners
  • Nomenclature
  • Appendices
  • Acknowledgements

Don't worry if you are still trying to understand too much information. We will cover every part of the above guideline in detail to help you best understand IEEE referencing. We also have a template example so you can start your paper once you finish this article.

     I.        How to format abstracts in IEEE

An abstract summarizes a research paper or article. IEEE recommends that the abstract should be a single paragraph. You will need to follow a 200-word count limit while writing your abstract.

The best-quality abstract conveys a precise research summary and does not include jargon or irrelevant materials. You can include 2 to 3 keywords and mention them at the end of your abstract. The font size for your IEEE abstract will be “9”.

Here’s a quick example of how you can format your abstract paper.

Abstract - The IEEE referencing system is a referencing style known as "the author-date system". IEEE referencing involves two parts: in-text citations, which are found in the body of the work, and reference list entries, which are found at the document's end. An IEEE in-text citation includes the author's last name and the publication's year, e.g. (Smith, 2020). The reference list entry includes all the information necessary to identify and find the source, including the author's last name and initials, the work's title, the date of publication, and other identifying information. Abstracts are short summaries that provide an overview of a document or article. They are typically used to help readers determine whether or not a document is relevant to their needs. An IEEE abstract should be between 150 and 250 words. It should provide an overview of the document's purpose, main points, and conclusions. It should not include any citations or references.

In the above example, you will notice

1. Text is justified
2. Font size is 9 pts
3. The typeface is Times New Roman
4. “Abstract” at the start is italic for differentiation
5. Paragraph is bold

Index terms are added in a separate paragraph following the abstract. Index terms are like keywords and are essential for IEEE to maintain its research database.

Here’s how you can format index terms in alphabetical order

Index Terms – Analytics, Data analytics via computational methods, IEEE analytics methods, statistical indexing

   II.        How to format Section headings in IEEE

You can easily improve the effectiveness of your research paper by appropriately dividing it into different sections. There are three basic sections.

1. Introduction
2. Body of the research paper
3. Conclusion of the research paper

You can make these sections more readable by dividing them into various headings. In IEEE referencing systems, 4 types of heading are generally used.

1. Primary Headings
2. Secondary Headings
3. Tertiary Heading
4. Quaternary Headings

Primary Heading: The primary heading starts with Roman numbers followed by a period. The heading is centre-aligned above the text column. All the alphabets are in SMALL CAPS.

1. PRIMARY HEADING

IEEE referencing system is a parenthetical author-date system. IEEE in-text citations consist of the author's last name and the publication's year, e.g. (Smith 2020). If you are quoting directly from a source, you will also need to include the page number, e.g. (Smith 2020, p.5). The first author's last name should alphabetize IEEE reference list entries. If there's more than one work by the same author, it should be listed in chronological order, with the earliest work first.

Secondary Heading: Secondary heading is listed/numbered by a “Capital Letter” like A, B, C and so on. The letter is immediately followed by a Period. Text is aligned to the left, no indent is given, is set in italics, and is written in title case. An important point to note is heading text is separated from a paragraph by a line break.

For example, I will format the above paragraph in the secondary heading style of the IEEE referencing system.

1. Secondary Heading

The secondary heading is listed/numbered by a "Capital Letter" like A, B, C, etc. The letter is immediately followed by a Period. Text is aligned to the left, no indent is given, is set in italics, and is written in title case.

Tertiary Heading: This is the third level of heading. The font of the heading is italics and written in title case. The heading is numbered in Arabic Numerals followed by a round bracket. One em indent is added at the start. Important to note here that there is no line break in the tertiary heading and coming paragraph.

Let's format the above paragraph as a tertiary heading in the IEEE system.

1) Tertiary Heading: This is the third level of heading. The font of the heading is italics and written in title case. The heading is numbered in Arabic Numerals followed by a round bracket. One em indent is added at the start. Important to note here that there is no line break in the tertiary heading and coming paragraph.

Quaternary Headings: Use lowercase letters followed by a close parenthesis, set the text in italics and sentence case, left-align it, indent two ems, and separate from the text with a colon. No line break is required after the heading to distinguish the heading from the text.

Let's format the above paragraph as a quaternary heading in the IEEE system.

1. a) Quaternary headings: Use lowercase letters followed by a close parenthesis, set the text in italics and sentence case, left-align it, indent two ems, and separate from the text with a colon. No line break is required after the heading to distinguish the heading from the text.

  III.        Comparison between different heading styles in IEEE referencing with example

  IV.        How to format special headings in IEEE

You will encounter multiple special headings while drafting a research paper like Appendix, Note to practitioners, nomenclature etc.

Appendix

The appendix heading is edited and formatted just like the Primary heading. You can use the same font style and text to format the appendix heading. In the case of a single appendix, there is no need to name and number it. However, if your paper has more than one appendices, you must name and number each in Roman numerals.

You will give a title to each appendix, like the title "Appendix A" to the first one and so on. The following examples will elaborate further;

APPENDIX A

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HIMALAYAS

                                                     The Himalayas are nature’s mysterious sanctuary for minerals, animals, and trees. The best views, food, and scenery make the region heaven on earth. The beauty of the Himalayas is quoted in many books, folklore, stories, and beyond.

 APPENDIX B

HIMALAYAS: AN EXQUISITE EXPERIENCE

                                                     The Himalayas are nature’s mysterious sanctuary for minerals, animals, and trees. The best views, food, and scenery make the region heaven on earth. The beauty of the Himalayas is quoted in many books, folklore, stories, and beyond.

Note to Practitioners

Note that practitioners will come directly after your abstract. It is an optional section to include, but you can tell the users what to expect from the study and the practical applications of the study. Note to practitioners are usually one or two paragraphs in length but can be more depending on you.

The following example will help you understand how to write and format Notes to Practitioners.

Note to practitioner – The information in the research can be used to identify masses or blood clots in veins to a greater extent. The technology uses imaging techniques and modern contrast materials to help physicians pinpoint problematic areas.

Nomenclature

Suppose you have a lot of mathematical notations, symbols, and equations in your research paper. In that case, defining such symbols and variables in the Nomenclature section is essential. It is usually at the start of the paper, and its heading is considered the primary heading, and you can edit it as such.

Here’s how it will look once formatted

NOMENCLATURE

π      pi is C/R

µ       Coefficient of friction

You can start your introduction once you are done with the nomenclature.

Reference and Acknowledgement

Use the same format for your reference and acknowledgement headings as you do for your primary headings, but don't label or enumerate them.