How did Earth's early continental crust form? Insights from Western Australian cratons

太古代地球第一批大陆的形成是地球历史上经历过的重大变革之一。大陆的形成对地球表面的组成产生了深远的影响，因为它启动了海洋中生命发展所必需的元素的释放，并对地球地幔的组成演化产生了深远的影响。然而，尽管大陆陆块在地球演化中起着至关重要的作用，但它们形成的过程和地球动力学背景以及它们在太古代是如何演化的，仍然存在激烈的争论。构成地球最早大陆核心的花岗岩类掌握着解决这场争论的线索。在这个博士项目中，学生将使用一套新颖的、专门设计的岩石学和同位素工具来研究这些花岗岩的成因，以测试不同的大陆形成模式。

The formation of Earth's first continents during the Archean eon is one of the major transformations that our planet has experienced throughout its history. Continent formation had a profound effect on the composition of both the Earth's surface, by kick-starting the release of elements necessary for the development of life in the oceans, and on the compositional evolution Earth's mantle. However, despite the crucial role of continental landmasses in Earth's evolution, the processes and geodynamic context in which they were formed and how these evolved during the Archean remain hotly debated. The granitoids forming the core of Earth's earliest continents hold the clues to resolving this debate. In this PhD project, the student will investigate the genesis of these granites using a set of novel, purpose-designed petrological and isotopic tools to test different models of continent formation.