Acquisition of an SEM-CL Detector for Research and Education in Geology and Geological Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines

一个新的国家的最先进的阴极发光成像系统的科罗拉多学校MinesThis国家科学基金会赠款支持购买一个国家的最先进的阴极发光探测器连接到现有的扫描电子显微镜在地质和地质工程系的科罗拉多学校的矿业。当电子以非常小的尺度聚焦在材料上时，新的探测器会产生彩色图像。它将用于经济地质学、构造学、油气藏研究和环境地球化学。一些例子包括贵金属矿床中的矿物，以了解矿石的形成和成像矿物，以确定地质年龄。新的探测器还将用于科罗拉多矿业学院的本科生和研究生的教学。它还将使其他四所科罗拉多大学和学院的研究人员和学生受益。该仪器将提供给工作人员和公民科学家，以提高博物馆展品在科罗拉多学校矿业地质博物馆和丹佛自然与科学博物馆。这地球科学仪器和设施计划的NSF部门拨款支持购买一个国家的最先进的阴极发光探测器，将连接到一个最近委托的领域-发射扫描电子显微镜在地质和地质工程系的科罗拉多矿业学院。新的探测器将允许从纳米到厘米尺度的天然和合成材料的发光的高分辨率和高灵敏度成像。新的分析能力将主要用于经济地质学、构造学、油藏表征和环境地球化学的纯研究和应用研究。重点将放在相关显微镜的新工作流程的发展，允许矿物的生长和蚀变纹理的研究。应用将包括在微观到纳米尺度上石英中内在和外在缺陷分布的可视化，以更好地了解形成碱金属和贵金属矿床的热液流体中的温度、压力和盐度变化如何导致石英沉淀和溶解。成像与新的探测器将被用来区分成分和潜在的年龄域的锆石从沉积，火成岩和变质岩之前的U-Pb年代学分析，允许选择最合适的年代学方法，并确定位置的情况下，复杂的分区锆石晶体原位测年。新的探测器还将被用作教学资源，以促进科罗拉多矿业学院本科生和研究生的学习经验。新的分析能力将补充落基山脉地区其他地方可用的电子束仪器，使其他四所科罗拉多大学和学院的研究人员和教育工作者受益。仪器将提供给工作人员和公民科学家成像发光矿物，以提高博物馆展品在科罗拉多矿业学院地质博物馆和丹佛自然与科学博物馆。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过评估使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准的支持。

A New State-Of-The-Art Cathodoluminescence Imaging System for Colorado School of MinesThis National Science Foundation grant supports the purchase of a state-of-the-art cathodoluminescence detector to be attached to an existing scanning electron microscope at the Department of Geology and Geological Engineering of the Colorado School of Mines. The new detector creates color images when electrons are focused on materials at very small scale. It will be used in economic geology, tectonics, oil and gas reservoir studies, and environmental geochemistry. Some examples include minerals in precious metal deposits to understand ore formation and imaging minerals to determine geological ages. The new detector will also be used in teaching undergraduate and graduate students at Colorado School of Mines. It will also benefit researchers and students at four other Colorado universities and colleges. The instrument will be available to staff and citizen scientists to enhance museum exhibits at Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.This NSF Division of Earth Sciences Instrumentation and Facilities Program grant supports the acquisition of a state-of-the-art cathodoluminescence detector to be attached to a recently commissioned field-emission scanning electron microscope at the Department of Geology and Geological Engineering of the Colorado School of Mines. The new detector will allow high-resolution and high-sensitivity imaging of the luminescence of natural and synthetic materials from the nanometer to centimeter scale. The new analytical capabilities will be primarily used in pure and applied research in economic geology, tectonics, reservoir characterization, and environmental geochemistry. Emphasis will be placed on the development of new workflows for correlative microscopy allowing the study of growth and alteration textures in minerals. Applications will include the visualization of the distribution of intrinsic and extrinsic defects in quartz at the micro- to nanoscales to better understand how temperature, pressure, and salinity changes in hydrothermal fluids forming base and precious metal deposits result in quartz precipitation and dissolution. Imaging with the new detector will be employed to distinguish compositional and potential age domains in zircons from sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks prior to U-Pb geochronological analysis, allowing selection of the most suitable geochronology method and to identify locations for in-situ dating in the case of complexly zoned zircon crystals. The new detector will also be used as a teaching resource to further the learning experience of undergraduate and graduate students at Colorado School of Mines. The new analytical capabilities will complement electron beam instrumentation available elsewhere in the Rocky Mountain Region, benefiting researchers and educators at four other Colorado universities and colleges. The instrumentation will be made available to staff and citizen scientists to image luminescent minerals to enhance museum exhibits at Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum and the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.