The distinction of Outstanding Referee is awarded to physicists who have demonstrated exceptional work in the assessment of manuscripts published in the Physical Review journals. Instituted in 2008, the Outstanding Referee programme annually recognizes approximately 150 of the currently active referees for their invaluable work.

Lifetime Award

Comparable to the Fellowship in the American Physical Society and other organizations, the distinction of Outstanding Referee is a lifetime award. This year, the selection was made from 30 years of records on over 71,000 referees who have been called upon to review manuscripts, including more than 40,000 manuscripts that were submitted in 2018. The basis for the Outstanding Referees selection takes into account the quality, number and timeliness of a referee’s reports. The 2019 honorees come from 29 different countries.

The efforts of a good referee not only keep the standards of the journals at a high level, but in many cases also help authors improve the quality and readability of their articles. Anne de Visser, affiliated with the Institute of Physics (UvA),  has received a lapel pin and a certificate to commemorate his achievement.