Sm doped ZnO nanorods with various concentrations have been successfully synthesized using a hydrothermal method. XRD analysis indicates that there are no impurities or secondary phases in all the samples. The continuous expansion of d-spacing from XRD and TEM analysis suggests the effective corporation of Sm ions in ZnO. It is found that pure ZnO is paramagnetic. Both 1% and 5% Sm doped ZnO nanorods are ferromagnetic at room temperature. 5% Sm doped ZnO has a large paramagnetic signal at low temperature, suggesting the formation of the precipitation or clusters of samarium oxide. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.