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Full reference

Learn how to format full references in IEEE style. Follow correct order, punctuation, and layout to cite sources accurately in your academic work.

In IEEE, every source you cite should be in a reference list at the end of your work. Only include the sources you have cited.

The rules of IEEE determine:

  • which elements are included (e.g. author, title, publisher)
  • the order in which the elements appear
  • punctuation (e.g. full stops, commas, colons, etc.)
  • use of capital letters
  • font format (e.g. italics).

Ensure you are following the template precisely, including the punctuation, spaces, capital letters and font format, as these form part of the style.

Elements of an IEEE reference

Author format Instructions Example
One author Give the author's first initial and surname.

[1] T. Kaczorek, "Minimum energy control of fractional positive electrical circuits," Archives of Electrical Engineering, vol. 65, no. 2, pp.191–201, June 2016, doi: 10.1515/aee-2016-0013.
Two authors Give the first initial and surname of both authors.

[2] D. Impedovo and G. Pirlo, “Dynamic handwriting analysis for the assessment of neurodegenerative diseases: A pattern recognition perspective,” IEEE Revs. in Biomed. Eng., vol. 12, no. 5, pp. 209-220, May, 2018. doi: 10.1109/RBME.2018.2840679.
Three to six authors Name all authors up to six authors in the reference list.

[3] T. M. Jones, B. C. Milligan, A. C. Potts, W. B. Brown, S. E. Thomas, and C. S. Martin. Hydraulics: A research guide. 2nd ed. New York, NY, USA: Wiley, 2014
Seven or more authors Use the first listed author’s name followed by 'et al.' in italics.

[4] L. Zhao et al., Artificial intelligence. Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard Univ. Press, 2019.

Title format Instructions Example
Basic format  
  • Give the full title in the exact working and spelling shown in the source.
  • Use initial capitals for the first word of any title and any proper nouns this is called sentence case.
  • Use the official abbreviated form for journal titles when available. See IEEE Reference Style Guide – Common Abbreviations for examples.

[1] R. L. Myer, “Parametric oscillators and nonlinear materials,” in Nonlinear Optics, vol. 4, P. G. Harper and B. S.  Wherret, Eds. San Francisco, CA, USA: Academic, 1977, pp. 47-160.  
Title and subtitle     If there is a subtitle, separate the title and subtitle with a colon (:).  

[2] H. Yang, H. Luo, F. Ye, S. Lu and L. Zhang, “Security in mobile ad hoc networks: Challenges and solutions,” IEEE Wireless Comm., vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 38–47, Feb. 2004, doi: 10.1109/MWC.2004.1269716  
Part and whole of work  
  • Include both titles if the source is part of a larger work (e.g. a book chapter or an article from a journal or newspaper).
  • Use double quotation marks for parts of works (e.g. a book chapter or journal article).
  • Use italics for the title of the whole work (e.g. book, journal or newspaper).

[3] M. Khandelwal, “Correlating P-wave Velocity with the Physico-Mechanical Properties of Different Rocks,” Pure and Applied Geophysics, vol. 170, no. 4, pp. 507–514, Apr. 2013, doi: 10.1007/s00024-012-0556-7.  

You need to include the location and publisher for print books, conference proceedings, thesis and dissertations. This information can usually be found with the copyright information.

Publisher format   Instructions     Example  
Basic format  
  • List the location of the publisher followed by the name of the publisher.
  • City, State, Country: Publisher abbreviation

[1] R. L. Myer, “Parametric oscillators and nonlinear materials,” in Nonlinear Optics, vol. 4, P. G. Harper and B. S Wherret, Eds. San Francisco, CA, USA: Academic, 1977, pp. 47-160.  
Abbreviations   Use abbreviations for publishers. Please check the Useful Abbreviations in References section of the IEEE Reference Style Guide for Authors.  

[4] L. Zhao et al., Artificial intelligence. Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard Univ. Press, 2019.  

The date identifies the year or specific date the source was made available in the version you accessed.

Date format   Instructions   Example  
Basic format  
  • How you write the date is different for each resource type.
  • For books and book chapters include the year (eg. 2000) after the publisher

[1] G. G. You, Mining project value optimization. Singapore: Springer Nature, 2024.    
Abbreviations  

Abbreviate months of five or more letters. See Abbreviations for examples.

[1] K. Keogh and L. Sonenberg, “Designing Multi-Agent System Organisations for Flexible Runtime Behaviour,” Applied sciences, vol. 10, no. 15, p. 5335, Aug. 2020, doi: 10.3390/app10155335.    
Accessed date  
  • Include an Accessed date for online material like websites.
  • Write this as Month. Day, Year.  

[1] Australian Government. “Groundwater in Australia,” Geoscience Australia. Accessed: Aug. 25, 2025, [Online]. https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/water/groundwater/groundwater-in-australia  

DOI

  • The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) acts as a permanent link to an item.
  • Include the DOI whenever one is available. If no DOI is available, place a full stop after the year, add '[Online]. Available:' and the URL.
  • DOI is written in lower case followed by a colon and the DOI number.
  • Always end a DOI with a full stop.
  • Do not hyperlink the DOI (i.e. a link that allows the reader to access the source by clicking on it).
DOI format   Example  
Template     doi: xxxx  
Full reference  

[1] D. M. Bukhary and R. Z. Alshali, “A simulation model used in teaching denture border adjustment: Randomized controlled trial,” Journal of Dental Education, vol.  86, no. 1, pp. 98-106, Sept. 1, 2021, doi: 10.1002/jdd.12784.  

Website link (URL)

  • If an online source does not have a DOI, include the direct link (URL) to the source.
  • Include an Accessed date for online material such as websites.
  • There is no full stop at the end of the URL.
  • Do not hyperlink the URL (i.e. a link that allows the reader to access the source by clicking on it).
Website link format   Example  
Template   https://www/xxxxxx
Full reference  

[1] D. M. Bukhary and R. Z. Alshali, “A simulation model used in teaching denture border adjustment: Randomized controlled trial,” Journal of Dental Education, vol.  86, no. 1, pp. 98-106, Sept. 1, 2021, doi: 10.1002/jdd.12784.