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FAQ: Reusing IOP Published content

How do I request permission to reuse content published by IOP?

Please see “Reusing IOP Published Content” for details on the permissions request process

Do I need permission to reuse IOP material for which I was the original author/co-author?

All IOP authors who publish on a subscription basis may include original figure(s) and text from articles they have written, within the quota outlined in the STM Guidelines, in new works created or co-created by them, provided that they notify IOP of their intended use. Where there are co-authors, you should inform them. Use which is not covered by the STM Permissions Guidelines, or which exceeds the STM Permissions Guidelines quotas, will require IOP’s permission (See “Reusing IOP Published content“). You must always cite the publication from which the figure(s)/text was taken.

If your article was published on an open access basis, you can use it without permission provided the relevant CC licence terms are adhered to.

Can I use my subscription article as part of my thesis/dissertation after it has been published with IOP?

When you transfer the copyright in your article to IOP, we grant back to you certain rights, including the right to include all or part of the Final Published Version of the article within any thesis or dissertation. Please note you may need to obtain separate permission for any third party content you include within your article. Please include citation details, “© IOP Publishing. Reproduced with permission.  All rights reserved”. The only restriction is that if, at a later date, you want to share your thesis/dissertation online, permission to include the Final Published Version of the article within the online version of your thesis/dissertation will need to be sought from IOP. Alternatively, you may choose to replace the article in the online version of your thesis/dissertation with either a Preprint or the Accepted Manuscript version (if the embargo period has passed), provided you comply with our Preprint Policy or Author Rights: Accepted Manuscript policy, as relevant.

What are the different versions of my article and how can I use them?

  • Author’s Original/Preprint is the version of the article before peer review or editing, as submitted by an author to the journal.
  • Accepted Manuscript is the version of the article accepted for publication, including all changes made as a result of the peer review process, and which may also include the addition to the article by IOP Publishing of a header, an article ID, a cover sheet and/or an ‘Accepted Manuscript’ watermark, but excluding any other editing, typesetting or other changes made by IOP Publishing and/or its licensors’.
  • Final Published Version is ‘the peer reviewed, edited, formatted and typeset version of the article, including any tagging, indexing and other enhancements published by IOP Publishing and/or its licensors’.
  • Version of Record is ‘the Final Published Version, including any post publication corrections or enhancements and any other changes made by IOP Publishing and/or its licensors’.

For information on permitted reuse for each of these versions, please refer to our Author Rights Policy

May I reuse supplementary material forming part of the article?

Authors retain copyright in any supplementary material, granting IOP a non-exclusive licence to reproduce it. You may reuse supplementary material to which you own the rights. This includes reuse of a video abstract, although you may need to obtain separate permission from the copyright owner for any third party content you included within it. The video abstract should reference the article, and, wherever possible, should provide a link back to the Version of Record of the article to which it relates.

Can I use IOP published content for lecture and classroom purposes?

If your institution is an IOP subscriber, use of this kind may be included in your licence; please check with your librarian. Non-subscribers may be permitted to do this under the terms of a licence from a local reproduction rights organisation (RRO). In the UK, this will be the CLA and in the US, the CCC. Pay-per-use permission for photocopying and electronic use is available via the CCC.

Do I need permission to adapt an IOP figure?

Generally, adapted figures require the permission of the copyright owner of the original figure. You do not require permission if the figure you have created is so different from the original that it is no longer recognisable. This is judged on a qualitative not a quantitative basis. Therefore, even if you have only used one small part of the original figure, you will probably still require permission. Changing the font, colour or size of the figure, or only using part of it, still requires permission.

How do I gain permission to use content from IOP conference series?

The content in IOP Publishing’s Conference Series journals are all published on a gold open access basis. From around Dec 2012, all of our conference series articles are published under a CC BY Licence. For further information on this, please see CC Licences. Older conference series articles were not published under a CC BY licence. You should check the licence on the article itself prior to use. If the article was not published under a CC BY licence or the article does not state what licence the article was published under, please contact permissions@ioppublishing.org to request permission if you wish to reuse any content from the article.

Can I reuse IOP Published content in a new work to be published by IOP?

If you are submitting an article to be published by IOP, you may include original figure(s) from articles published in a journal owned by IOP or in a partner journal for which IOP handles permissions in new works created or co-created by you. You must always ensure that you have cited the prior publication from which the figures were taken. However, if IOP does not accept the article, and you wish to submit the article to another journal not published by IOP, you must obtain express permission from IOP to reuse any figures. If you wish to use figures published under the subscription model by one of our partner journals who handle their own permissions, you must contact the partner to request permission.

What are Green/Gold Open Access articles and where can I reuse them?

Please see our Guide to open access for more information.

What are the STM Permissions guidelines and do they affect permissions?

Please see our guide page on STM Guidelines for more information.