Samarium

Samarium (Sm) — 10-Year Trends

As of 2026-09-11 · the last 10 years

Samarium’s research intensity currently sits at about 76% of its own all-time peak, a level reached in 2006, which lies outside this ten-year window.

Research intensity ran from about 82% of the element's own all-time peak in 2016 to about 76% in 2026 — a net decline with recoveries along the way, and the all-time peak (2006) lies before this window. Over the same span its share of research attention across all elements held steady. Among the 118 elements, samarium has a larger-than-average research literature.

The number of papers involving the element rose from about 1,302 in 2016 to about 2,367 in 2025 (1.82x). That is slower than the literature as a whole grew over the same years, so the element lost ground in the wider body of research even as its own count rose.

The bulk of samarium research in this period belongs to communities where the element is a supporting player rather than the central subject. The largest material community is Samarium-Cobalt Magnet Recycling and Lanthanide Separation, which accounts for about 16% of the element's recent research. This work focuses on recovering samarium from waste SmCo magnets and separating it from other lanthanides like europium and gadolinium. Samarium is a minor presence in this much larger field, appearing in only about 3% of its papers. The community’s share has remained steady over the last decade. A key paper in this area, "Novel Bimorphological Anisotropic Bulk Nanocomposite Materials with High Energy Products" (2017), has been cited over 290 times, while more recent work on recycling strategies using deep eutectic solvents (2023) has been cited about 41 times.

A second significant area is Samarium Doping and Luminescence in Tellurite Glasses, representing about 6% of recent research. Here, samarium ions are used to alter the structural, thermal, and optical properties of glass matrices, often for radiation shielding. Samarium is a minor presence in this community as well, involved in about 1% of its papers. This community’s share has been steady, though it has grown slightly from 4.4% to 6.3% over the window. Recent studies on boosting optical and gamma-ray shielding in borate glasses (2026) have been cited about 7 times, while earlier work on lead oxide effects in potassium borate glass (2023) has been cited about 53 times.

The third material community is Samarium Diiodide Catalysis and Lanthanide Solvation, holding about 6% of the element's research. This field centers on samarium diiodide as a catalyst for organic reactions and the solvation of lanthanides. Samarium is a minor presence here, appearing in about 1% of papers. Its share has declined slightly, from 8.4% to 6.1%. Notable work includes "Reductive samarium (electro)catalysis enabled by Sm III -alkoxide protonolysis" (2024), cited about 41 times, and a 2025 study on the four-electron reduction of benzene, cited about 20 times.

The remaining 72% of samarium research falls into other, smaller communities that are too diffuse to name individually. Overall, the composition of samarium research has remained remarkably stable, with no single community gaining or losing significant ground. The element’s role is consistently that of a specialized additive or recoverable resource rather than a primary focus of major scientific fields.

For a deeper look at samarium’s current standing, see the Last 12 Months report.