IEEE Paper Formatting Specifications

Complete formatting guide based on IEEE conference/journal paper template.

Page Setup

Page Size and Orientation

Size: A4 (210mm × 297mm)
Orientation: Portrait

Margins

Top: 19mm (0.75 inches)
Bottom: 43mm (1.69 inches) - larger for page numbers
Left: 14.32mm (0.564 inches)
Right: 14.32mm (0.564 inches)

Column Layout

Number of columns: 2
Column width: Calculated automatically based on page width minus margins
Column separation: 4.22mm (0.166 inches)
Column balance: Balance final page columns if possible

Typography

Font Family

All text: Times New Roman
Fallback: Times, serif

Font Sizes and Styles

Title:

Size: 24pt
Weight: Bold
Case: Title Case
Alignment: Centered
Spacing: 18pt after

Author Names:

Size: 11pt
Weight: Regular
Alignment: Centered
Spacing: 12pt after

Author Affiliations:

Size: 10pt
Weight: Regular (Italic for email)
Alignment: Centered
Spacing: 18pt after

Abstract Heading:

Size: 10pt
Weight: Bold
Case: Title Case
Alignment: Left
Style: Italic

Abstract Text:

Size: 10pt
Weight: Regular (Bold for "Keywords:")
Alignment: Justified
Indentation: None
Spacing: 18pt after

Section Headings (Level 1):

Size: 10pt
Weight: Bold
Case: UPPERCASE
Alignment: Left (centered also acceptable for IEEE)
Numbering: Roman numerals (I, II, III) or Arabic (1, 2, 3)
Spacing: 6pt before, 3pt after

Subsection Headings (Level 2):

Size: 10pt
Weight: Bold Italic
Case: Title Case
Alignment: Left
Numbering: A, B, C or 1.1, 1.2, 1.3
Spacing: 6pt before, 3pt after

Sub-subsection Headings (Level 3):

Size: 10pt
Weight: Regular Italic
Case: Sentence case
Alignment: Left
Numbering: 1), 2), 3) or 1.1.1, 1.1.2
Spacing: 3pt before, 3pt after

Body Text:

Size: 10pt
Weight: Regular
Alignment: Justified
Line spacing: Single (1.0)
Paragraph spacing: 3pt after
Indentation: None (block paragraphs)

Figure Captions:

Size: 8pt
Weight: Regular
Format: "Fig. X." in bold, followed by caption text
Alignment: Centered
Spacing: 6pt before figure, 12pt after caption

Table Captions:

Size: 8pt
Weight: Regular
Format: "TABLE X" in uppercase, centered above table; caption text below
Alignment: Centered
Spacing: 6pt before caption, 6pt after table

Footnotes:

Size: 8pt
Weight: Regular
Numbering: Superscript numbers
Placement: Bottom of column

References:

Size: 10pt (reference number 8pt)
Weight: Regular
Alignment: Left
Numbering: [1], [2], [3]...
Indentation: Hanging indent after number
Spacing: 0pt between references

Numbering Conventions

Sections

Two acceptable styles:

Style 1: Roman numerals

I. INTRODUCTION
II. RELATED WORK
   A. Context Modeling
   B. Adaptation Techniques
III. PROPOSED APPROACH

Style 2: Arabic numerals

1. INTRODUCTION
2. RELATED WORK
   2.1 Context Modeling
   2.2 Adaptation Techniques
3. PROPOSED APPROACH

Figures and Tables

Figures: Numbered sequentially (Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Fig. 3...)
Tables: Numbered sequentially (TABLE I, TABLE II or Table 1, Table 2...)
Equations: Numbered on right margin (1), (2), (3)...

Special Elements

Equations

Inline: Use inline math for simple expressions: $x + y = z$
Display: Center important equations on separate line
Numbering: Right-aligned equation number in parentheses
Spacing: 6pt before and after
Font: Times New Roman or Symbol font for math

Example:

                    E = mc²                    (1)

Algorithms and Code

Font: Courier New or other monospace font
Size: 9pt
Placement: Within figure environment
Caption: "Fig. X. Algorithm description"
Indentation: Preserve code structure

Lists

Bulleted lists:

Use bullet points (•)
Indent by 5mm from margin
Spacing: 0pt between items

Numbered lists:

Use 1), 2), 3) or 1., 2., 3.
Indent by 5mm from margin
Align text with item number

Quotations

Short quotes (< 3 lines): Inline with quotation marks
Long quotes: Indented block, 9pt font, no quotes
Always cite source

Figures and Tables Guidelines

Figure Placement

Position: Top or bottom of column preferred
Width: Single-column (width of one column) or double-column (spans both columns)
Centering: Center within column or page
Quality: Minimum 300 DPI for images
Format: Vector (PDF, EPS) preferred; raster (PNG, JPG) acceptable
Color: Use grayscale or ensure prints clearly in grayscale

Figure Captions

Format:

Fig. 1. System architecture showing the three main components:
context acquisition, reasoning engine, and adaptation module.

Rules:

"Fig." abbreviation, not "Figure"
Number followed by period
Caption text starts with capital letter
Can be multiple sentences
Place below figure

Table Formatting

Border: Use horizontal lines only (top, bottom, below header)
Header: Bold text in first row
Alignment: Numbers right-aligned, text left-aligned
Spacing: Compact spacing within table
Font: Same as body text (10pt) or slightly smaller (9pt)

Example:

TABLE I
PERFORMANCE COMPARISON

Method          Accuracy    Time (ms)
───────────────────────────────────
Baseline        87.3%       145
Proposed        94.2%       132
───────────────────────────────────

Caption placement:

Table number and title above table (centered)
Additional caption text below table (centered)

Table Captions

Format:

TABLE I
PERFORMANCE COMPARISON ACROSS THREE DATASETS

Header and Footer

Running Headers

Odd pages: Paper title (right-aligned)
Even pages: Author names (left-aligned)
Font: 8pt
Position: Top margin area

(Note: Many IEEE conferences omit running headers)

Page Numbers

Position: Bottom center
Font: 10pt
Format: Simple number (1, 2, 3...)
Start: Page 1 on title page (may be suppressed for submission)

Citations and References

In-Text Citations

Format: [1], [2, 3], [5-7]

Examples:

"Recent work [1] has shown..."
"Several studies [2, 3, 4] demonstrate..."
"As noted in [5], context awareness..."

Reference List

Section title: "REFERENCES" or "REFERENCES" (all caps, centered or left)

Format by type:

Journal article:

[1] A. Author, B. Author, and C. Author, "Title of paper,"
    Journal Name, vol. X, no. Y, pp. ZZZ-ZZZ, Month Year.

Conference paper:

[2] A. Author and B. Author, "Title of paper," in Proc.
    Conference Name (CONF 'YY), City, Country, Year,
    pp. XXX-XXX.

Book:

[3] A. Author, Book Title, Edition. City: Publisher, Year.

Book chapter:

[4] A. Author, "Chapter title," in Book Title, B. Editor, Ed.
    City: Publisher, Year, pp. XXX-XXX.

Technical report:

[5] A. Author, "Title," Company/Institution, City, State,
    Country, Tech. Rep. Number, Year.

Website:

[6] A. Author. "Page title." Website Name. Accessed: Month
    Day, Year. [Online]. Available: http://url

Rules:

List references in order of first citation
Use initials for first/middle names
Italicize journal/book titles
Use quotation marks for article/paper titles
Include DOI if available: doi: 10.1234/example
Hanging indent after reference number
Abbreviate author names consistently

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Define on first use: "Context-Aware Systems (C-AS)"
Use consistently after definition
Common technical abbreviations okay: API, CPU, RAM, etc.
Measurement units: use standard abbreviations (mm, kg, MHz)

Hyphenation and Line Breaks

Hyphenation: Automatic hyphenation allowed
Line breaks: Avoid widows and orphans
Section breaks: Major sections start at top of column when possible

Color Usage

Use color sparingly
Ensure readability in grayscale
Test figures print clearly in black and white
Use patterns/textures in addition to color for distinction

File Preparation

Submission Format

PDF: Primary format for submission
Source files: LaTeX or Word source may be required
Figures: Separate high-resolution files may be needed
Fonts: Embed all fonts in PDF

PDF Requirements

Version: PDF 1.4 or higher
Fonts: All fonts embedded
Images: Minimum 300 DPI
Page size: Exact A4 (no cropmarks)
Color space: RGB or grayscale
File size: Typically < 10 MB

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Wrong margins: Using default Word/LaTeX margins
Wrong font: Using Arial or other sans-serif fonts
Single column abstract: Should be two-column
Centered section headings: Usually left-aligned
Figure quality: Low-resolution or pixelated images
Caption format: Wrong placement or format
Reference format: Inconsistent citation style
Page numbers: Wrong position or format
Line spacing: Using double-spacing instead of single
Paragraph indentation: Using indent instead of block style

Tools and Templates

LaTeX

Use IEEE conference/journal template:

\documentclass[conference]{IEEEtran}

Microsoft Word

Download official IEEE Word template from IEEE website

Formatting Checkers

IEEE PDF eXpress for validation
Online margin checkers
Font embedding validators

Checklist for Final Submission

Page size: A4 (210mm × 297mm)
Margins: 19mm top, 43mm bottom, 14.32mm left/right
Font: Times New Roman throughout
Two-column layout with 4.22mm spacing
Section headings formatted correctly
All figures have captions below
All tables have captions above
All figures/tables referenced in text
Reference list formatted correctly
All fonts embedded in PDF
Page numbers included (if required)
File size acceptable
PDF prints correctly
All acronyms defined on first use
No orphan headings (heading alone at column bottom)

Additional Resources

IEEE Author Center: https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/
IEEE Templates: https://www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html
IEEE Reference Guide: https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/create-your-ieee-article/authoring-tools-and-templates/ieee-reference-guide/
IEEE PDF eXpress: Check with conference/journal for PDF validation service

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