Optically stimulated Luminescence dating of quartz

Exposure to light reduces the Optically stimulated Luminescence (OSL) signal from quartz and provides the basis for dating the event of light exposure and thus the sedimentation.

OSL dating

  • Age range:

    • Few years (depending on signal intensity and sensitivity of equipment for which the lexsyg systems are especially developed)

    • Up to ~150-200,000 years (depending on dosimetry)

  • Sediment types

    • Aeolian sediments like dunes or loess are suited very well

    • Lacustrine and fluvial deposits can be dated

    • Glaciogenic sediments are difficult

  • Used for:

    • Geomorphological reconstruction

    • Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction

    • Earth quake history

    • River system reconstruction

    • Chronostratigraphy

  • Stimulation wavelengths for quartz

    • Blue

    • Green

    • UV 

Murray AS & Wintle AG (2000) Luminescence dating of quartz using an improved single-aliquot regenerative-dose protocol. Radiation Measurements 32, 57-73.