As of 2026-09-11 · the last 10 years
Cadmium’s research intensity sits at about 66% of its all-time peak, a level that has remained essentially flat over the last decade, with the element’s historical high occurring well before this window.
Research intensity ran from about 65% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 66% in 2026 — essentially flat across the window, and the all-time peak (1980) lies before this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements rose. Among the 118 elements, cadmium has a larger-than-average research literature.
The number of papers involving the element rose from about 34,251 in 2016 to about 75,617 in 2025 (2.21x). That matches the growth of the literature as a whole over the same years: the general tide of scientific output, not a surge specific to the element.
The largest share of cadmium research belongs to a community focused on cadmium and co-contaminant uptake in rice and wheat. These papers examine cadmium accumulation in rice and wheat, often alongside lead or arsenic, and the resulting oxidative stress in paddy and agricultural soils, with distinctive work on cadmium uptake and accumulation in contaminated soil. Cadmium is one strand of a broader community, accounting for about 27% of its papers. This group holds about 32% of the element's recent research, a share that has remained steady. A key anchor is a 2021 review on heavy metals and pesticides in agricultural soil, cited over 2,300 times, while a 2025 study in Science on global soil pollution by toxic metals, cited over 840 times, represents the current high-impact direction.
A second major community is dedicated to heavy metal toxicology and human health risk assessment. Here, cadmium is central, appearing in about 37% of the community's papers, with research frequently addressing cadmium-induced toxicity and blood cadmium levels. This community accounts for about 18% of cadmium's recent research, a share that has held steady. The decade’s most cited work in this area is a 2021 paper on the toxic mechanisms of five heavy metals, cited over 3,100 times, alongside a 2024 review on heavy metal toxicity and human health effects, cited over 920 times.
The third material community involves cadmium telluride and sulfide thin-film solar cells. These papers focus on CdTe absorbers, CdS window layers, and back-contact architectures for thin-film photovoltaic devices, with distinctive phrases including CdTe thin films and cadmium sulfide. Cadmium is one strand of this broader community, involved in about 15% of its papers. Its share of cadmium research is about 6%, which has remained steady. A notable recent contribution is a 2024 Nature Energy paper on high-concentration silver alloying for solar cells, cited over 410 times.
Overall, the composition of cadmium research has remained stable, with the rice and wheat uptake community holding the largest share and the toxicology community maintaining a significant presence. The remainder of the literature, comprising about 43% of recent research, is distributed across other smaller communities.
For a deeper look at cadmium’s current standing, see the element's Last 12 Months and Executive Brief reports.
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