Selenium

Selenium (Se) — 10-Year Trends

As of 2026-09-25 · the last 10 years

Selenium’s research intensity stands at about 95% of its all-time peak, a level reached within this decade.

Research intensity ran from about 90% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 95% in 2026 — a net rise with setbacks along the way, and the all-time peak (2022) falls inside this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements held steady. Among the 118 elements, selenium has a larger-than-average research literature.

The number of papers involving the element rose from about 15,604 in 2016 to about 39,661 in 2025 (2.54x). 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 body of work belongs to the community of Selenium Nanoparticles, Biofortification, and Selenoprotein Biology. This research focuses on the biological activity of selenium, its intake, and the role of selenoproteins in human health. Selenium is central to this community, as about 70% of its papers involve the element. It accounts for about 50% of selenium’s recent research, a share that has remained steady over the last decade. A key paper in this area, "Research progress of glutathione peroxidase family (GPX) in redoxidation" (2023), has been cited over 610 times.

A second significant area is Selenium Chalcogenide Thin-Film Photovoltaic Materials, where researchers synthesize and optimize cadmium, copper, and antimony selenide thin films for solar energy conversion. Here, selenium is one strand of a broader community, appearing in about 10% of its papers. This community’s share of selenium research has declined from about 13% to about 7% over the window. Notable work includes "High-concentration silver alloying and steep back-contact gallium grading enabling copper indium gallium selenide solar cell with 23.6% efficiency" (2024), cited over 420 times.

A smaller but steady community involves the Plant Physiology of Heavy Metal Contamination and Abiotic Stress, examining how plants respond to environmental stressors like drought and heavy metals. This area represents about 3% of selenium’s recent research. A highly cited paper in this field, "Drought Stress Impacts on Plants and Different Approaches to Alleviate Its Adverse Effects" (2021), has been cited over 1,900 times.

Overall, the composition of selenium research has shifted slightly. While the core biological and nanoparticle communities have held their ground, the share of work in thin-film photovoltaics has decreased, and the remainder of research communities has grown to nearly 40% of the total.

For a deeper look at the element's current standing, see the Last 12 Months and Executive Brief reports.