Erbium Substitutes: Alternatives and Trade-offs

Erbium can be replaced in some applications and not in others. For fiber-optic laser repeaters, USGS names USGS reported in 2002 that erbium alone possesses the required optical properties. It names substitutes for 2 applications in all, and the table below gives its wording for each, including where a substitute costs performance or does not exist.

What is erbium used for?

• Fiber-optic amplifiers: cables carry signals over long distances because they incorporate periodically spaced lengths of erbium-doped fiber that act as laser amplifiers; erbium is used despite its high cost because it alone has the required optical properties (USGS, 2002)
• Other heavy rare earth uses: USGS says heavy rare earths are used in catalysts for petroleum refining, fiber optics, high-strength magnets, industrial and medical lasers, and medical and scientific equipment such as portable X-rays, and that end use varies by element.

Which materials can replace erbium?

Frequently asked questions

What can replace erbium?

Fiber-optic laser repeaters: USGS reported in 2002 that erbium alone possesses the required optical properties; Several applications: light rare earths can substitute for heavy rare earths, though substitutes are generally less effective.

What is erbium used for?

Erbium is used in fiber-optic amplifiers and other heavy rare earth uses. Fiber-optic amplifiers: cables carry signals over long distances because they incorporate periodically spaced lengths of erbium-doped fiber that act as laser amplifiers; erbium is used despite its high cost because it alone has the required optical properties (USGS, 2002).

Which country produces the most erbium?

USGS does not report erbium separately; China produced the most rare earths of any country in 2025, an estimated 270,000 t (69%) of the world's 390,000 t of rare earth oxide equivalent.

Is erbium a critical mineral?

Yes. Erbium is on all four official critical minerals lists: the US, EU, Australian and Canadian. Erbium was already on the 2022 US list and stays on the final 2025 list of 60 minerals. US net import reliance for erbium in 2025 was 100% for heavy rare earth compounds and metals.

Sources

Read on October 13, 2026. Figures on this page come from these documents; where a number is an estimate, the source says so.

1. USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Rare earths. Production, reserves, uses, substitutes, recycling and events
2. USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Rare earths (heavy)
3. USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: introduction (Table 7 and Figures 10A and 10B). Net import reliance, leading producer and price changes for critical minerals
4. USGS Fact Sheet 087-02: Rare Earth Elements, Critical Resources for High Technology (2002). Used for the uses of individual elements; it dates from 2002
5. Federal Register: Final 2025 List of Critical Minerals
6. EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2024/1252
7. Department of Industry, Science and Resources: Australia’s Critical Minerals List and Strategic Materials List
8. Government of Canada: Canada’s critical minerals
9. Treibacher Industrie: glass industry page
10. IPG Photonics, Form 10-K for 2025 (filed 23 February 2026)
11. China Northern Rare Earth: 2025 annual report, in Chinese (17 April 2026)