ImpaQ Ecosystem•Clarivate, Scopus & CORE Data
Clarivate WoS 2024 / 2025 Data
IMPAQ
WoS SCIE Q1Scopus Q1SCImago #2,267Top JournalGold OA

Photoacoustics

Acronym:pacs
•
Abbreviation (ISO):PHOTOACOUSTICS
•
Identifier (ISSN):2213-5979(Print)
•
Publisher:Elsevier GmbH
Clarivate IF (2026)
6.9↑ +0.1
Journal Impact Factor
IF Trend↓
WoS Quartile
Q1
WoS SCIETop Tier
Clarivate WoS JCR
WoS Categories↓
JCR Release Date: 2026-06-17

Impact Factor Trend (2018–2026)

Clarivate IF trend for Photoacoustics

WoS Q1
04913020185.2520195.8720208.4820219.6620227.920237.120246.820256.92026
Annual Impact Factor Metric
Current (2026):6.9
Scopus SJR & RankScopus Q1
1.557
#2,267

SCImago Journal Rank citation prestige weighting

Scopus Year: 2025
H-Index (2025)
66

66 papers with at least that number of citations each

WoS: SCIE / JCRTop Tier
Self-Citation Rate19.7%
Safe Level (< 15%)Warning Level (> 20%)
Self-citation below 15% indicates strong scholarly independence.
Volume & Open AccessGold OA
87articles/year
100% Gold OA•97.87% Original Research

Aims & Scope

The aim of the open access Photoacoustics journal (PACS) is to publish original research and review contributions within the fast growing field of photoacoustics (optoacoustics) and thermoacoustics, which exploits optically and electromagnetically excited acoustical and thermal phenomena for visualization and characterization of a variety of materials and biological tissues, including living organisms. While some of the spectroscopic and photothermal applications have reached a mature state, many other research directions experience an explosive growth, in particular biomedical photoacoustics, which is currently considered the fastest growing bio-imaging modality. The wealth of investigated topics clearly indicates that this field has developed a broad range of tools for fundamental and applied research. The enormous recent progress is greatly supported by the advances in laser technologies, ultrasound detection approaches, development of inverse theory and fast reconstruction algorithms. This progress is also driven by a large number of unmet biological and medical needs that can be addressed by the unique contrast mechanisms available to photoacoustic (optoacoustic) methods. These include pre-clinical research and clinical imaging of vasculature, tissue and disease physiology, drug efficacy and treatment monitoring, optical anatomy and molecular imaging employing fluorochromes, chromophores and nanoparticles. Correspondingly applications span the entire range of biological and medical imaging including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, neuroimaging, ophthalmology or imaging in immunology, diabetes and obesity, cell trafficking application and a multitude of other biological functions. The multi-disciplinarily nature of photoacoustics and thermoacoustics is also evinced by the growing contribution from chemistry and nanotechnology where a multitude of novel contrast materials and agents have been constantly developed, from nanoparticles and organic dyes, to targeted agents and genetically expressed markers.

Topics Covered (Recognized by AI)
Physics83.9%Optics81.6%Medicine77.5%Computer science70%Engineering67.5%Materials science61.1%Quantum mechanics55.2%Photoacoustic imaging in biomedicine52.3%Radiology49.3%Biology43.2%Artificial intelligence40.7%Acoustics38.9%Computer vision36.1%Chemistry34.8%Biomedical engineering34.5%Laser31.1%Electrical engineering28.4%Internal medicine25%Genetics24.8%Pathology23.6%Optoelectronics23%Mathematics22.7%Organic chemistry21.4%

WoS Categories & Quartiles

Detailed JCR / JCI category rankings and quartile breakdown from Clarivate

Clarivate JCR & JCI
JCRSCIE2026

ENGINEERING, BIOMEDICAL

Q1
Rank22/130
IndexSCIE
JCRSCIE2026

INSTRUMENTS & INSTRUMENTATION

Q1
Rank6/81
IndexSCIE
JCRSCIE2026

RADIOLOGY, NUCLEAR MEDICINE & MEDICAL IMAGING

Q1
Rank17/217
IndexSCIE
JCISCIE2026

ENGINEERING, BIOMEDICAL

Q1
Rank11/130
IndexSCIE
JCISCIE2026

INSTRUMENTS & INSTRUMENTATION

Q1
Rank1/81
IndexSCIE
JCISCIE2026

RADIOLOGY, NUCLEAR MEDICINE & MEDICAL IMAGING

Q1
Rank12/217
IndexSCIE

Annual Historical Statistics & Publications

Track annual publication volume, total citations, and Impact Factor evolution

12 year
2026Latest
IF6.9
Articles / Year77
Total Citations53
2025
IF6.8
Articles / Year108
Total Citations796
2024
IF7.1
Articles / Year95
Total Citations1,406
2023
IF7.9
Articles / Year133
Total Citations2,790
2022
IF9.656
Articles / Year96
Total Citations2,900

SCImago & Scopus Journal Intelligence

Global SCImago ranking, SJR prestige index, Scopus coverage, and societal policy impact

Rank #2,267Scopus Q1SCImago Profile
Scopus Coverage:2013-2026
Scopus Broad Areas:MedicinePhysics and Astronomy
Scopus Citation Rank (SJR)Q1
1.557

Weighted prestige citation metric per document indexed in the Scopus database.

Quartile: Scopus Q1
Citations / Doc (2 years)
7.52

Average citations received per document published in the 2-year window.

2-Year Citation Window
Estimated Publication Fee (APC)
$3,740 USD

Estimated Article Processing Charge for Open Access publication.

Estimated cost / article

Scopus 3-Year Publication & Citation Window

3-Year Citations2,386
3-Year Documents323
Citable Documents309

Aggregated from Scopus database across the 3-year SJR evaluation window.

Societal Impact & Inclusivity (SCImago)

Policy Citations (Overton)0

Citations in government and international policy documents

Female Author Rate33.0%

Percentage of female authors published in the journal

Real-world societal policy reach and author gender diversity tracked by SCImago.

Scopus Subject Categories

Atomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsQ1
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and ImagingQ1
Academic Metric Intelligence

Journal Metrics & Citation Visualizations

Total Cites vs Self-Cites

Evaluation of scholarly independence and citation reach

Total citations steady growth
Self-citation: 19.7%

Citations per Document

Citation metric windows across 2, 3, and 4 years

Cites / Doc (4 years)Cites / Doc (3 years)Cites / Doc (2 years)

Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Classification

Major / minor zone classification and CAS Early Warning List history

Major Category (Broad Field):
1区 (Zone 1)Medicine
Minor Category (Specific Field):
2区ENGINEERING, BIOMEDICAL
CAS Early Warning List History:
Updated annually: 2020 – 2024
2020
Not warned
2021
Not warned
2022
Not warned
2023
Not warned
2024
Not warned

Academic Intelligence Overview & Context

ImpaQ Analysis

Photoacoustics (acronym: pacs, abbr: PHOTOACOUSTICS, ISSN: 2213-5979) is a peer-reviewed international scholarly journal in the field of Physics and Astronomy, published by Elsevier GmbH in Germany. The periodical holds a Journal Impact Factor (JIF) of 6.90, ranking in quartile Q1 of Web of Science (SCIE), a Scopus SJR indicator of 1.557 (Q1), an H-index of 66.

The journal enforces rigorous peer evaluation with an annual output of approximately 87 scientific articles. In terms of accessibility and author fees, it operates under the Gold OA model with an estimated APC of $3,740 USD. It serves as a benchmark publication platform for academics, researchers, and doctoral candidates seeking global research visibility.

Publishing & Editorial Information

Detailed publisher, peer-review turnaround, and publication cycle specifications

Open Access Model
Gold OA
Publisher
Elsevier GmbH
Publication Language
English
Frequency
Periodic
Indexing & Databases
SCIEScopusDOAJPubMed
Editorial Address
HACKERBRUCKE 6, MUNICH, GERMANY, 80335

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Record UUID: 526a60b1-5017-4ff0-9a6c-429deb57ed05
Database Updated: 2026-10-16