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Unlock your guides7.4 Other radiometric dating techniques
2 min read•august 7, 2024
Radiometric dating goes beyond carbon-14. Techniques like rubidium-strontium and samarium-neodymium can date rocks billions of years old. These methods measure ratios of parent to daughter isotopes, assuming initial amounts of daughter isotopes.
Luminescence dating offers alternatives for younger materials. counts damage from uranium decay, while thermoluminescence measures in minerals. These techniques expand our ability to date various geological and archaeological samples.
Radiometric Dating Techniques
Rubidium-Strontium Dating
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Top images from around the web for Rubidium-Strontium Dating
How do scientists date rocks and fossils? — Earth@Home View original
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Putting It Together: Rocks and the Rock Cycle | Geology View original
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Palaeos Time: Geological Timescale: Radiometric Dating View original
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How do scientists date rocks and fossils? — Earth@Home View original
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Putting It Together: Rocks and the Rock Cycle | Geology View original
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- decays to with a of 48.8 billion years
- Useful for dating rocks and minerals older than 10 million years (metamorphic and igneous rocks)
- Measures the ratio of Rubidium-87 to Strontium-87 in a sample
- Assumes the initial amount of Strontium-87 is known or can be estimated
- Commonly used in dating lunar samples and meteorites
Samarium-Neodymium and Lutetium-Hafnium Dating
- decays to with a half-life of 106 billion years
- decays to with a half-life of 37.8 billion years
- Both techniques are used for dating very old rocks (older than 10 million years)
- Useful for determining the age of the Earth's mantle and crust
- Measures the ratio of parent to daughter isotopes in a sample
- Assumes the initial amount of daughter isotope is known or can be estimated
Rhenium-Osmium Dating
- decays to with a half-life of 41.6 billion years
- Used for dating very old rocks and minerals (older than 10 million years)
- Particularly useful for dating molybdenite (a mineral containing molybdenum and sulfur)
- Measures the ratio of Rhenium-187 to Osmium-187 in a sample
- Assumes the initial amount of Osmium-187 is known or can be estimated
Luminescence Dating Techniques
Fission Track Dating
- Based on the spontaneous fission of in minerals such as zircon and apatite
- Fission events create linear damage trails (fission tracks) in the mineral
- The number of fission tracks is proportional to the age of the sample
- Useful for dating rocks and minerals between 20,000 and 1 million years old
- Commonly used in dating volcanic ash layers and tephra
Thermoluminescence and Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating
- Based on the accumulation of trapped electrons in mineral grains due to exposure to ionizing radiation
- Trapped electrons are released when the mineral is heated (thermoluminescence) or exposed to light (optically stimulated luminescence)
- The amount of released energy is proportional to the age of the sample
- Useful for dating sediments, pottery, and other archaeological materials
- is applicable to materials between 50,000 and 500,000 years old
- is applicable to materials up to 200,000 years old
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