ECS welcomes proposals from the scientific community for Focus Collections that highlight scientific and technological areas of current interest, emerging importance, or future promise. A Focus Collection is a curated set of high-quality articles centered on a clearly defined scientific or technical theme. Collections may address an emerging topic, an established field taking a new direction, or a timely area of particular interest to the electrochemical and solid state science communities. A collection may also be developed in connection with a scientific meeting, conference, or community initiative; however, a Focus Collection is not a conference proceedings and should be designed to engage and attract contributions from the broader scientific community. Focus Collections are led by Guest Editors with appropriate expertise in the proposed area and are developed in collaboration with ECS Editorial Leadership. All manuscripts submitted to a Focus Collection are subject to the same editorial evaluation, independent peer review, publication standards, and research integrity requirements as other submissions to ECS journals. Complete responses to the questions below will provide ECS Editorial Leadership with the information needed to evaluate the scientific rationale, scope, editorial leadership, and proposed approach for the collection and to determine whether the proposal should be approved.

Guest Editors provide subject-matter expertise and help support the development and success of a Focus Collection. Proposed Guest Editors should be established or emerging leaders in the collection’s scientific or technical area, demonstrate appropriate research integrity standards, and be prepared to participate actively throughout the project. All proposed Guest Editors are subject to review and approval by ECS and the journal’s Editorial Leadership. Guest Editors are expected to help define the collection’s scope, identify and encourage potential contributors, promote the collection to the broader research community, and provide editorial or peer-review support when requested. They may also be consulted regarding whether a submission fits the collection’s scope, challenges in identifying appropriate reviewers, or other scientific questions related to the collection. All manuscripts submitted to a Focus Collection undergo the journal’s standard editorial evaluation and independent peer-review process. Guest Editors do not have independent authority to accept or reject manuscripts. Final editorial decisions remain with the journal’s appointed Editorial Leadership, and appropriate conflict-of-interest safeguards will be applied when a Guest Editor is an author or otherwise has a conflict involving a submission. Focus Collections should include an appropriate group of Guest Editors whose expertise and perspectives support the breadth of the proposed topic. Consideration should be given to disciplinary, institutional, geographic, career-stage, and other relevant forms of representation within the scientific community. This proposal form allows up to eight (9) Guest Editors to be identified. Additional Guest Editors may be considered following approval of the proposal.

Please provide a clear and detailed description of the proposed Focus Collection, including the scientific or technical theme, its significance and timeliness, the key topics or questions the collection will address, and the research community or communities it is intended to serve.The description should clearly define the intended scope of the collection and distinguish the topic from areas that are outside its scope. Please write the response in a form suitable for a broad scientific audience.If the proposal is approved, ECS may use or adapt this text for the Focus Collection webpage, calls for papers, and other promotional materials.

Please provide a realistic estimate based on identifiable prospective contributors rather than the maximum number of researchers who may potentially work in the field. As a general benchmark, a viable proposal should normally be supported by approximately 15-20 prospective authors or author groups who have already expressed a credible intention or strong interest in submitting a manuscript. Proposers should consider that not every prospective contributor will ultimately submit and that not every submitted manuscript will be accepted for publication. ECS may request additional information regarding prospective contributors when evaluating whether the anticipated submission volume is sufficient to support the collection.

Please propose a realistic opening date that allows sufficient time following approval for ECS to establish the collection, confirm Guest Editors, develop the collection webpage and submission workflow, prepare promotional materials, and coordinate contributor outreach. The requested date is a preference and is not guaranteed. The final opening date will be established by ECS in consultation with the approved Guest Editors and other relevant parties. Date must be at least 60 days into the future.