Acquisition of a high-field variable-temperature SQUID magnetometer

这项地球科学仪器和设施计划拨款支持购买高场、变温磁性测量系统，该系统将安装在明尼苏达大学岩石磁性研究所(IRM)内。该仪器将支持在广泛的温度范围和不同的应用领域研究地质材料的磁性和行为，并应用于研究板块构造和重建地球史前气候和环境条件。该仪器将支持学生对天然物质磁性分析方法的实践培训，并将对美国岩石和古地磁的学术研究产生广泛影响，因为它被纳入现有的NSF支持的社区设施中。地质材料在低温和可变应用领域中的磁性和行为在岩石磁学和古地磁学中具有基本重要性：它们提供了对天然剩磁的载体和起源的独特见解，从而对从核心演化到岩石圈动力学的重要相关地球物理现象具有独特的见解。收购一种基于高灵敏度超导量子干涉器件的磁强计，样品可以受到高磁场(高达7特斯拉)和宽温度范围(从1.8到1000 K)的影响，这将为明尼苏达大学岩石磁性研究所增加一项新能力。鉴于广泛的地球科学界可通过IRM利用该仪器，将支持一系列基本地球材料研究，包括研究磁性矿物的基本物理行为，提供有关磁性矿物混合物和天然大块样品中粒度分布的信息，并将其应用于古环境研究和古地磁剩磁载体的表征。对地球深部过程、岩石圈动力学、环境中的铁循环、生物地磁学和行星科学的研究将从这项收购中受益。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Division of Earth Sciences Instrumentation and Facilities Program grant supports acquisition of a high field, variable temperature Magnetic Properties Measurement System that will be housed within the Institute for Rock Magnetism (IRM) at the University of Minnesota. The instrument will support studies of the magnetic properties and behavior of geologic materials over a wide range of temperatures and in variable applied fields with application to study of plate tectonics and reconstructing Earth’s pre-historic climate and environmental conditions. The instrumentation will support hands-on student training in methods of natural material magnetic analysis and have broad impact for U.S. academic research in rock and paleomagnetism given its incorporation within an existing NSF supported community facility.The magnetic properties and behavior of geologic materials at low temperatures and in variable applied fields are of fundamental importance in rock magnetism and paleomagnetism: they offer unique insights into the carriers and origins of natural remanence, and thus into important related geophysical phenomena ranging from core evolution to lithospheric dynamics. Acquisition of a highly sensitive superconducting quantum interference device based magnetometer in which samples can be subjected to high magnetic field (up to 7-Tesla) and a wide range of temperatures (from 1.8 to 1000 K) will add a new capability at the University of Minnesota Institute for Rock Magnetism. Given broad geoscience community access to the instrument through the IRM, a range of fundamental Earth materials research will be supported including studies of the fundamental physical behavior of magnetic minerals that provides information on the mixtures of magnetic minerals and distributions of particle sizes in natural bulk samples with applications in paleoenvironmental research and in characterization of paleomagnetic remanence carriers. Research on deep Earth processes, lithospheric dynamics, iron cycling in the environment, biogeomagnetism and planetary science will benefit from this acquisition.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.