Continued Development and Application of 40Ar/39Ar Dating for Archaeometric Research

在美国国家科学基金会的支持下，伯克利地质年代学中心（BGC）将继续开发40Ar/39Ar定年技术，并将该技术应用于一系列重要的古人类遗址。该设施包括两个全自动激光质谱仪系统，具有单晶40Ar/39Ar测年能力，可以对凝灰质沉积物等多年龄成分样品中的亚毫克单火山晶体进行精确的分析和地质测年。该实验室还增加了一个系统，该系统可以定制，以确定年轻或变质的火山物质的年代。氩定年法对古人类学家来说极其重要，因为它几乎可以用于过去的整个600万年；这是原始人出现和发展的时期。许多重要的考古和古生物遗址位于火山地区，如东非，其中含有可以通过这种技术确定年代的沉积物。BGC与非洲、欧洲和亚洲的许多研究人员合作，在美国国家科学基金会的支持下，这些项目将继续和扩大。

Deino With National Science Foundation support the Berkeley Geochronology Center (BGC) will continue to develop the technique of 40Ar/39Ar dating and apply this technique to a series of significant paleoanthropological sites. The facilities include two fully automated laser-mass spectrometer systems with single- crystal 40Ar/39Ar dating capability which enables the analytically precise and geologically accurate dating of sub- milligram single volcanic crystals from multi-age component samples such as tuffaceous sediments. The laboratory has also added a system which can be tailored to date young or altered volcanic materials. Argon dating is extremely important to paleoanthropologists because it can be used over almost the entire last 6 million years; this is the period when hominids emerged and developed. Many significant archaeological and paleontological sites are located in volcanic regions such as Eastern Africa and contain sediments which can be dated by this technique. The BGC has collaborated with researchers at a number of sites in Africa, Europe and Asia, and with NSF support such projects will be continued and expanded.