Making and Using Connection Metadata

DataCite DOIs describe resources such as datasets, samples, software and publications with rich metadata. An important part of this metadata is the description of connections between resources that use persistent identifiers (PIDs) provided by DataCite and others. Together these resources and their connections form a graph: the PID Graph.

The DataCite metadata schema includes properties that facilitate connections between works and other types of entities, such as people and organizations. These properties enable references to many types of persistent identifiers, representing different types of works, people, and organizations. Including connections to other PIDs in DataCite DOI metadata helps realize the PID Graph and promotes interoperability between systems.

Works, people, and organizations—and the connections between them—are searchable via DataCite Commons and the DataCite GraphQL API .

These pages provide additional guidance on how to create and use connections to other works, people, and organizations:

DataCite connection metadata infographic
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