ESR study of thermal history and dating of a stone tool

Abstract

Electron spin resonance (ESR) of Fe 3 § ions and of radiation-induced centers in quartz (E', peroxy and Al centers) was studied to distinguish between bumt and unburnt stone tools and to determine their age. The yellow stone tool with a reddish edge discovered at the paleolithic site in Kamitakamori, northern Japan, was investigated. The ESR spectrum intensity of Fe 3 § ions around g = 4.3 and the color of the material changed at 600~ and 240~ respectively, which indicates that the red part was heated at 240-600~ The E' center in the red part was used for dating because isochronal annealing expe¡ showed low thermal stability of the Al center and overlap of broad signals at g = 2.0086 onto the peroxy center. Assuming the same efficiency of defeet formation in the red part as of that in the laboratory-heated material at 450~ the obtained age of 520-770 ka is in concordance with the ages of the tephra layers at the site.

Firing temperature determination and thermoluminescence dating of a brick with cuneiform characters found in the ruins of Ancient Babylon

“…Furthermore, these ions are associated with hydrated species of Fe 3+ , which can be oxidized to Fe x O y or FeOOH (Bensimon et al 2000). The EPR spectrum also shows another line in the region of g = 4.3, typical of Fe 3+ in an orthorhombic site (Bensimon, Deroide & Zanchetta 1999;Presciutti et al 2005;Tani et al 1997). Fig.…”

ESR in the 21st century: From buried valleys and deserts to the deep ocean and tectonic uplift

“…ESR's potential to date a wide variety of sample types will undoubtedly continue to make it an important research tool in late Cenozoic settings. ESR can date many materials that are commonly encountered in geological, paleontological, and archaeological contexts, and new applications are constantly being tested (e.g., Debuyst et al, 2001;Dibble et al, 2013aDibble et al, , 2013bFukuchi, 2001;Godfrey-Smith et al, 2003;Gotze & Plotze, 1997;Lee & Schwarcz, 2001;Molod'kov, 2001;Patnaik et al, 2009;Potter et al, 2004;Schellman & Radtke, 2001; Rink et al, 2003;Shih et al, 2002;Skinner et al, 2001bSkinner et al, , 2005aTani et al, 1998;Ulusoy 2003Ulusoy , 2004Whitehead et al, 2002;Woda et al, 2001). In archaeological contexts, ESR has dramatically changed our understanding of human origins and cultures (e.g., see references in Blackwell, 2001Blackwell, , 2006Falguères, 2003).…”

Proceedings of the International workshop on the Nojima Fault core and borehole data analysis

“…ESR signals found in quartz have been studied and applied for dating using their sensitivity of radiation (Ikeya 1988, Fukuchi 1991, Buhay et al 1988, Imai and Shimokawa 1988 or survey of heating history (Tani et al 1997, Fukuchi 1998, Yamanaka et al 1998. Some of the ESR centers are also sensitive of environmental gas.…”