Employing the 40Ar/39Ar dating method focusing on volcanism in both the marine and terrestrial environments
Introduction
In our OSU Argon Geochronology Lab we employ the 40Ar/39Ar geochronology method to determine how hotspots evolve and interact with the lithosphere, in quantifying rates at which large igneous provinces are constructed, in deciphering the early history of the Earth and Moon, in tracking transport pathways of terrigenous sediments from rivers to deep-sea sediments, and more.
Instruments
Our lab is equipped with two noble gas mass spectrometers for carrying out 40Ar/39Ar age determinations. We carry out analyses on two Thermo Scientific ARGUS VI Multi-Collector Instruments outfitted with five fixed Faraday detectors using 1012 Ω resistors for mass 40 and 1013 Ω resistors for masses 39, 38 and 37, and one ion-counting CuBe electron multiplier for mass 36.
Publications
Since 1977 investigators, students and post-docs in our laboratory have produced 40Ar/39Ar age data that appeared in more than 290 Peer-reviewed Publications and in 31 Senior, MSc and PhD Theses. This long list of papers could not have been possible without the more than 100 visitors over the last decades and our numerous national and international collaborators.
