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Citation and Bibliographies

Learn how to cite and format your papers.

IEEE Style

The IEEE Style is a formatting system developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers for technical writing, particularly in engineering and computer science. 

See the tabs on this page for rules, samples, and more assistance for citing and formatting in the IEEE Style. 

The IEEE Reference Guide is an open access document including highly detailed sample references created in the IEEE Style.


The IEEE citation style is made up of two parts:

  • A reference list organized by the order in which each item is cited for the first time in the text of the work.
  • In-text citations, numbered in square brackets, which refer to the full citation listed at the end of the work, e.g. [1]. 

These general rules apply to IEEE formatted bibliographies:

  • Author Names: Presented using the initials of the first and middle names then the full last name. 
  • Multiple Authors: If an item has more than 3 authors, list only the first author, followed by the phrase et al. (with italics, no comma after name). Et al. is an abbreviation for the Latin term et alia meaning "and others."
  • Capitalization: Capitalize the first letter of the first word of a book chapter, article, or reports. The first letter of a word that appears immediately after a colon for a chapter or article subtitle is also capitalized.  
  • Journals: Journal titles are presented using their official abbreviations from the CAS Source Index or the IEEE Editorial Style Manual for Authors.
  • Books: The first letter of all main words in the titles of books capitalized.
  • Italics: The titles of books and journals are italicized.
  • DOI: A Document Object Identifier (DOI) is required for all articles that have one.

These general rules apply to IEEE formatted notes:

  • Cite sources with a number in square brackets, inside the period.
  • If multiple sources are cited in one sentence, list each number in its own bracket, separated by a comma.

Click on the IEEE Samples tab above for an example of writing using in-text citations and a reference list. 

The references list (bibliography), is a list of all the resources you consulted for your project. It normally appears at the end of your project, allowing your readers to locate and independently consult sources that were cited as part of a work. Each source you use in your project must be included in your reference list, whether you directly quote from it or paraphrase it. In the IEEE style, the bibliography is ordered by each item's appearance in the text of your paper.

Below is a sample of writing using IEEE Style for notes and bibliography when some sources have already been mentioned previously in the paper.

Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize industrial automation and data-driven decision-making [1], [2]. Recent advances in neural network optimization have not only improved pattern recognition but also reduced training time across large datasets [2], [6], [7]. These computational improvements are directly influencing robotics and manufacturing systems, leading to greater efficiency and flexibility on the production floor [1], [3], [6].

The ethical implications of these developments remain a topic of intense debate [4], [5], particularly as nations begin to legislate AI safety standards [4], [8]. Scholars have argued that robust data analytics frameworks are essential for ensuring transparency and accountability in algorithmic systems [5], [6], [9]. Furthermore, climate and sustainability researchers are now leveraging AI to address global challenges such as emissions modeling and transportation planning [7], [9], [10].

Despite these benefits, critics warn that unregulated AI could deepen social inequalities and environmental risks if not properly governed [4], [5], [8], [10] and a focus on learning is recommended [11].

 

References

[1] J. K. Smith and L. R. Turner, Introduction to Artificial Intelligence Systems, 3rd ed. New York, NY, USA: McGraw-Hill, 2021.

[2] P. R. Johnson, “Advances in neural network optimization for image recognition,” IEEE Trans. Neural Netw. Learn. Syst., vol. 33, no. 8, pp. 4120–4132, Aug. 2022.

[3] M. Zhao, “Robotics and the future of labor,” in Handbook of Industrial Automation, T. Becker and R. O’Neill, Eds. London, U.K.: Routledge, 2020, ch. 7, pp. 145–167.

[4] L. Hernandez, “AI regulation heats up as nations race for dominance,” The New York Times, May 14, 2023, sec. A, p. 4.

[5] S. T. Lee, “Ethics of autonomous weapons,” Philos. Technol., vol. 35, no. 5, pp. 955–972, 2022.

[6] K. Patel, R. Gomez, and T. Liu, Data Analytics for Engineers, Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2019.

[7] E. R. Thompson et al., “A comprehensive global climate model intercomparison,” Nature Climate Change, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 1–14, Jan. 2024.

[8] R. N. Gupta and M. Al-Khalili, “Quantum computing applications in cybersecurity,” Comput. Secur., vol. 120, no. 3, pp. 101–115, 2023.

[9] D. Nguyen, “From data to decision: Machine learning in public health,” World Health Organization Tech. Rep., Geneva, Switzerland, WHO, Rep. 2022-47, 2022.

[10] B. A. Cohen, “Sustainability in urban transport: Lessons from Singapore,” Transport Rev., vol. 39, no. 6, pp. 765–781, 2021.

[11] L. Chen and A. Gupta, “Smart grid resilience through distributed learning,” in Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. Smart Energy Syst., 2021, pp. 233–238, doi:10.1109/SESG.2021.9401122.

Notes about this sample bibliography:

  • [1] and [6] are books
  • [2], [5], [8], and [10] are journal articles
  • [3] is a book chapter
  • [4] is a newspaper article
  • [7] has more than three authors, shortened with et al. following IEEE style conventions
  • [9] is a technical report, another common source type
  • [11] includes a DOI for the article

All information about writing professionally with the IEEE style can be found at the IEEE Author Center.

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