Element category: lanthanide
Holmium is a soft, malleable, ductile, silvery rare earth metal, also belonging to the lanthanide group of the periodic table. It has the highest magnetic permeability of any element, similar to dysprosium.
Holmium is used in alloys to create the strongest generated magnetic fields because of its high magnetic strength. As it can absorb neutrons, holmium also can be used in nuclear reactors.
Among holmium compounds, holmium oxide (Ho2O3, holmia) is often used as a yellow or red colorants for glass and cubic zirconia.