Bleaching of the post‐IR IRSL signal: new insights for feldspar luminescence dating

Post‐infrared (pIR) stimulated luminescence dating of sedimentary feldspar largely avoids the effects of anomalous fading that affect conventional infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) dating. However, optical resetting of pIR signals is more difficult than resetting the conventional IRSL signal, which may undermine the crucial assumption that pIR signals were effectively bleached upon deposition and burial of sediment grains. In this study, we quantify the bleaching properties of several pIR signals on various samples using laboratory‐simulated bleaching in full sunlight and water‐attenuated sunlight. Our data show that bleaching is most efficient under full spectrum conditions for all pIR signals and that pIR signals measured at elevated temperature are increasingly harder to bleach than IR and pIR signals measured at low temperature (e.g. IR at 50°C). All bleaching curves exhibit a very slow and steady decrease, indicating that a fixed un‐bleachable residual level cannot be reached within the 11 days of solar simulator exposure undertaken here. We show that the magnitude of a laboratory‐determined residual dose depends on the adopted bleaching protocol and cannot be used as a proxy for the dose that remains in the sample at the time of burial (remnant dose). Our data emphasize the importance of finding a balance between sufficient signal stability and a minimized contribution of a remnant dose when using pIR procedures for feldspar luminescence dating.     

Luminescence dating of lacustrine sediments from Tangra Yumco (southern Tibetan Plateau) using post‐IR IRSL signals from polymineral grains

Radiocarbon dating of bulk organic matter is the most commonly used method for establishing chronologies of lake sediments for palaeoclimate reconstructions on the Tibetan Plateau. However, this method is likely to be problematic because the dated material often suffers from old carbon contamination. Recently, advances in luminescence‐based chronological techniques have provided new options for dating lacustrine sediments. In the current study, we tested for the first time the applicability of a new post‐IR IRSL (pIRIR) measurement protocol for dating fine‐grained polymineral material from a deep‐lake sediment core from the central part of Tangra Yumco, on the southern Tibetan Plateau. Our results show that: (i) radioactive disequilibria in the uranium decay chain were observed in the studied lake sediments, and thus taken into account for dose rate calculation by using a dynamic modelling approach; (ii) the suitability and robustness of the pIRIR protocol measured at 150°C (pIRIR₁₅₀) for our samples are confirmed by a set of luminescence characteristic tests as well as the agreement with an independent age control; (iii) turbidite deposition partly caused an insufficient resetting of luminescence signals and thus apparent overestimation in luminescence dating; (iv) compared with the luminescence‐based age‐depth model, the ¹⁴C ages of bulk organic matter from the studied core generally yielded an age difference of ～2 ka, which is attributed to hardwater reservoir effects in Tangra Yumco. This study highlights the need for multi‐dating approaches of lake sedimentary archives on the Tibetan Plateau.     

TL dating of loess in China

TL ages of 56 loess samples collected from Xinjiang and the middle reaches of the Yellow River were determined by using fine-grained quartz and man-made light source bleaching techniques.The results indicate that :1.The well-preserved loess sections in Xinjiang began depositing 400000 a ago.The loess/paleosol series may be comparable with that observed in the middle reaches of the Yellow River but the depositing time was probably delayed by 30000-50000a.2.The bottom boundary age of the Malan loess varies from one place to another.The TL dates can be divided into two group:70000-130000 a and 30000-50000 a.The TL data are con-sistent with the appearance of two warmer climate periods since the Pleistocene,indicating obvious regional differences in stratigraphic development of loess,i.e.,paleosol occurred in the warm climate period in the same location,but loess was deposited in other locations.The initial age of loess deposition tends to become older from west to east and from south to north .In contrast ,the cold cli-matic belt showed an opposite trend.The TL ages of loess provide strong evidence for the Quaternary stratigraphy throughout geological times and the shift tendency of climatic belt.3.The depositing rate of the Malan loess along the middle reaches of the Yellow River varies from place to place but the TL age shows a linear relationship with the depositing thickness.The de-positing rate of loess in the north is higher than that in the south,suggesting that loess materials are derived from desert areas of northern China.     

Stability of fine‐grained TT‐OSL and post‐IR IRSL signals from a c. 1 Ma sequence of aeolian and lacustrine deposits from the Nihewan Basin (northern China)

We tested the suitability of the fine‐grained quartz (4–11 μm) Optical Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) and thermally‐transferred OSL (TT‐OSL), and the fine‐grained polymineral (4–11 μm) post‐infrared IRSL (post‐IR IRSL or pIRIR) signals for dating samples from aeolian‐lacustrine deposits from the Xiaochangliang archaeological profile in the Nihewan Basin, China; these deposits include material from the Jaramillo subchron (c. 1.0 Ma). In the upper aeolian section, the OSL and pIRIR₂₉₀ ages are consistent with each other, and show that the upper 8.8 m was deposited between c. 0.3 and c. 140 ka. The luminescence ages indicate a major discontinuity in deposition between the aeolian and the older lacustrine deposits. Below this hiatus at 9.4 m (i.e. in the lacustrine sediments) all three signals are found to be in field saturation (no further systematic increase in burial dose with depth) despite the TT‐OSL signal (apparent mean burial dose ~880 Gy) being well below saturation on the laboratory growth curve. This is in contrast to the pIRIR₂₉₀ signal, which saturates in the field at a level consistent with laboratory saturation. This results in a practical upper limit to the measured burial dose of ~900 Gy (2D₀). Thus for the TT‐OSL and pIRIR₂₉₀ signals, the upper limits for dating lacustrine deposits are <260 ka and c. 240 ka, respectively. These results have major implications for the appropriate future application of these signals. The ages of our lacustrine samples cannot be regarded as necessarily accurate ones; nevertheless, these ages provide the first long series absolute chronology for study of local palaeolithic and geomorphic evolution history aside from the magnetostratigraphical results available before this research.     

A post-IR IRSL chronology and dust mass accumulation rates of the Nosak loess-palaeosol sequence in northeastern Serbia

In the Middle Danube Basin, Quaternary deposits are widely distributed in the Vojvodina region where they cover about 95% of the area. Major research during the last two decades has been focused on loess deposits in the Vojvodina region. During this period, loess in the Vojvodina region has become one of the most important Pleistocene European continental climatic and environmental records. Here we present the dating results of 15 samples taken from the Nosak loess-palaeosol sequence in northeastern Serbia in order to establish a chronology over the last three glacial–interglacial cycles. We use the pIRIR₂₉₀ signal of the 4–11 μm polymineral grains. The calculated ages are within the error limits partially consistent with the proposed multi-millennial chronostratigraphy for Serbian loess. The average mass accumulation rate for the last three glacial–interglacial cycles is 265 g m⁻² a⁻¹, which is in agreement with the values of most sites in the Carpathian Basin. Our results indicate a highly variable deposition rate of loess, especially during the MIS 3 and MIS 6 stages, which is contrary to most studies conducted in Serbia where linear sedimentation rates were assumed.     

ESR dating and trapped electrons lifetime of quartz grains in loess of China

This paper reports the preliminary application of ESR dating to loess strata. The samples were collected from the 7th palaeosol layer (S7) of the Luochuan section, Shaanxi province in China. The ESR age of S7 is 736 ka (total dose 2945 Gy, annual dose 4 mGy/year). This age represents the original eolian accumulation age. The result is consistent with the palaeomagnetic data (730 ka). We have also carried out thermal annealing experiments on quartz grains from the S7 sample. ESR intensities (g = 2.0005) increase from 25°C to 320°C. It may be that trapped electrons transfer into the E′ centre site. ESR intensities decrease from 340°C to 460°C due to thermal annealing. We obtained a mean-life of E′ centre electrons at 20°C of 6.66 × 10⁸ years. The activation energy is 1.35 eV and frequency factor is 3.7 × 10⁸ min⁻¹.     

A review of current research on TL dating of loess

The thick loess deposits of China, Central Europe and North America are particularly suitable for the application of the thermoluminescence (TL) dating method because individual grains are likely to have travelled large distances and thus been well exposed to light before deposition. Wind-blown silt grains collected close to glacial rivers in Alaska have been shown to give a ‘zero age’ of not more than 2 ka, demonstrating the efficiency of the zeroing mechanism.Differences in laboratory procedures can cause differences in the TL ages reported, particularly for loess over 100 ka. TL ages for interstadial soils in Europe are in agreement with the very few radiocarbon dates on reliable material, such as charcoal. On the other hand TL dates from sites in Belgium and north-western Germany indicate that the previously accepted chronology, which was based on two radiocarbon dates on humic-rich sediments, is incorrect.The use of the ‘last interglacial’ palaeosol for assessing the TL dates on loess above and below it is limited by the uncertainty in the timing of termination of soil-forming processes; 107 and 71 ka are the limits suggested by the astronomically-derived time scale. Results on deposits from China, North America, Alaska and Europe are discussed in this context.     

Thermoluminescence dating of coarse-grain quartz from the Malan loess at Zhaitang section, China

Thermoluminescence (TL) ages were obtained for five loess samples taken from the Zhaitang section near Beijing, China, using the coarse-grain quartz technique. The paleodose values have been determined by the method of total sample bleaching and regeneration of the TL growth curve. The method appears to be suitable for the age determination of loess samples up to about 150,000 yr where the annual dose-rate values are of the order 3–4 mGy/yr. This limit is a function of the total accumulated dose. The ages are in good agreement with those obtained by a fine-grain TL technique and are consistent with geological and geomagnetostratigraphic evidence.     

A detailed cross-section of the deep seismic zone beneath northeastern Honshu, Japan

A cross-section of earthquakes located in northeastern Japan is presented by using pPdepths reported by the International Seismological Centre. Travel-time corrections for the water layer were used to recompute pP-depths of earthquakes located below the sea regions. Seven new focal-mechanism solutions, based on teleseismic and Japanese data, were determined for this region. The reconstructed cross-section shows a double seismic zone at intermediate depths of 80–150 km. Earthquakes located within the upper seismic plane are characterized by down-dip compression while those in the lower plane, located about 35 km below the other seismic plane, are characterized by down-dip extension. These observations suggest that, at these depths, stresses attributable to a simple “unbending” of a plate may contribute to the generation of earthquakes in addition to stresses generated by the gravitational sinking of the lithosphere. A detailed cross-section of shallow earthquakes in the same area between the trench and eastern coast of northeastern Honshu is presented along with focal-mechanism solutions. This cross-section delineates more clearly the seismic zones characterized by normal and low-angle thrust faulting.     

TL dating of malan loess in gansu province

TL dating technique is of great advantage for determining the initial time of storing energy (T₀) in an object to be analyzed. The sample is required to have undergone at least one thermal event, permitting all the residual storage to release. As a result, TL dating technique has found wide application in geochronology of pottery. The determination of T₀ of loess is mainly based on the fact that fine particles of which loess is composed will lose their storage in the process of transportation by wind. In our experiment TL dating technique was adopted to determine the ages of fine quartz grains, and the results were corrected for those of shine-fading experiment. TL dating of Malan loess specimens from Mt. Gaolanshan, Liugouhe near Lanzhou, Mt. Qijiadashan in Jingning and Baichaoyuan in Huining gave the age values of 2.6±0.1, 3.6±0,3. 4.7±0.5 and 10.0±0.6×10⁴ yr, respectively. The values indicate that the Malan loess began depositing in Late Pleisotocene, but the initial time and acumulation rate are different under different morphological conditions from place to place.     

中国风成黄土及其形成下限研究

“中国岩漠·砾漠·沙漠·黄土分布与主风向关系图”显示西北地区的第四纪黄土堆积是以风力为主的综合因素所形成，即就地起沙，近沙成土，一定地域的黄土在物源上隶属于一定地区的沙漠。黄土高原及新疆天山、昆仑山北麓的黄土地层结构的综合对比研究表明，典型风成黄土在不同地域和不同地貌单元上最早开始堆积的层位基本上是一致的，即均始于所有黄土剖面中的下粉砂层（Ｌ＿（１５））。该层以下的第四纪沉积类型因地而异，为非黄土沉积（湖相、冲洪积相及火山岩相等）。由黄土高原各代表性剖面的磁性地层学研究及新疆于田黄土下伏的安山玄武岩的同位素年龄测定获得黄土层开始堆积的时代为早更新世晚期，约１．２ＭａＢ．Ｐ。风成黄土的开始堆积是与黄土南缘各造山带（昆仑山、天山、祁连山及秦岭等）强烈的新构造隆升并产生区域环境效应有成因联系。这一更新世早期的事件层位得到了古生物学、新构造学、地貌学及地外物体高速撞击地球表面所产生的玻璃陨石等事件的佐证。     

Late Neolithic vegetation history at the pile‐dwelling site of Palù di Livenza (northeastern Italy

The Late Neolithic pile‐dwelling of Palù di Livenza yielded archaeological remains typical of the Square Mouth Pottery and Lagozza Cultures. A palynological investigation reveals important changes in the vegetation due to anthropogenic pressure. Between ca. 6590 and 5960 cal. yr BP, dense oak wood forests with deciduous Quercus, Fagus and Corylus extended around the mire, with no signs of human impact. The establishment of the pile‐dwelling, dated to ca. 5960 cal. yr BP, led to a strong reduction of forests, reclamation of wetlands, and expansion of herbaceous communities, with cultivated species, infestant weeds, nitrophilous and ruderal herbs, pastures and meadows. According to AMS dates and previous archaeological chronologies, the pile‐dwelling persisted for about 700 years (from ca. 5960 to 5260 cal. yr BP). The history of the pile‐dwelling after ca. 5260 cal. yr BP cannot be reconstructed because of recent contamination of the top part of the section. Rarefaction analysis was applied to estimate changes of palynological richness through time: the highest E(T_n) (between 56 and 69 taxa) are contemporaneous with the local development of the pile‐dwelling. The comparison of pollen data with archaeobotanical evidence indicates that Fragaria vesca, Malus sylvestris, Papaver somniferum and Physalis alkekengi were gathered at some distance from the site and that Linum usitatissimum is strongly under‐represented in pollen samples. Crop cultivation can be estimated for a radius of several hundred metres around the mire. Palù di Livenza is significant in the context of Neolithic archaeobotany of northern Italy and neighbouring countries. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optical dating of sand wedges and ice‐wedge casts from Qinghai Lake area on the northeastern Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau and its palaeoenvironmental implications

Sand wedges and ice‐wedge casts in the Qinghai Lake area on the northeastern Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau (QTP) occur within alluvial gravel or river terrace deposits. In this study, we report the results of quartz Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of the infill of five relict sand wedges and one ice‐wedge cast. Combining our dating results with previously published luminescence ages of permafrost wedges in the Qinghai Lake area, we show that sand/ice wedges formed at c. 62 ka, c. 45 ka and between 30 and 15 ka, and that the mean annual air temperature (MAAT) was depressed by at least ～3°C relative to present during the sand/ice‐wedge formation periods. This new work is partially corroborated by post‐LGM proxy records from lakes and aeolian deposits reported from the northeastern QTP. It also significantly extends the palaeoenvironmental record in the region in the period before the LGM, when other proxy records are rare, allowing a better understanding of the palaeoenvironmental conditions on the northeastern QTP.     

中国早中更新世古人类遗址年代学研究中两种同位素测年方法的应用与思考

中国早中更新世人类遗址的发现对研究东亚地区早期人类的生存与演化具有重要意义,但这一时段的遗址已超出或接近¹⁴C、光释光和铀系等常用同位素测年方法的极限。电子自旋共振/铀系(ESR/U系)联合化石测年和宇宙成因核素²⁶Al/¹⁰Be埋藏测年是目前为数不多的能同时对早中更新世遗址地点进行年代学研究的两种同位素测年方法,优势在于可以直接对被关注的考古遗存(如文化层内的动物化石或石英质砾石石制品)进行测年分析,避免了由于测年对象与考古遗存之间地层关系的不明确给测年结果带来不确定性。本文以云南元谋人、北京周口店第一地点、湖北白龙洞和山东沂源人遗址为例,介绍了ESR/U系法和²⁶Al/¹⁰ Be埋藏测年法在上述早期遗址年代学研究中的应用,并探讨了两种方法存在的局限性。对于洞穴遗址的ESR/U系联合测年,化石年龄的不确定性主要来自于对化石外部剂量率的重建,需要化石有较明确的出土层位;而²⁶Al/¹⁰Be埋藏测年需要解决来自于被测沉积物或石制品可能存在的复杂埋藏历史对测年结果的影响。ESR/U系联合化石测年和等时线²⁶Al/¹⁰Be埋藏测年方法是目前最可行的早期遗址测年技术手段,在动物群化石组合和磁性地层学等间接测年方法给出的时间框架下,通过上述两种同位素测年方法可以为研究东亚早期人类活动提供更为精细的年代。

     

Age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany determined by Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments

Lüthgens, C., Böse, M. & Preusser, F. 2011: Age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany determined by Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2011.00211.x. ISSN 0300‐9843 The Pomeranian ice margin is one of the most prominent ice‐marginal features of the Weichselian glaciation in northern Europe. Previous results of surface‐exposure dating (SED) of this ice margin disagree with established chronologies and ice retreat patterns, i.e. are much younger than previously expected. We crosscheck the age of the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position in northeastern Germany using single‐grain quartz Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of glaciofluvial sediments. OSL dating indicates an active ice margin between 20.1±1.6 ka and 19.4±2.4 ka forming outwash plains attributed to the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position. On the basis of these results, we suggest a critical reassessment of previous SED data available for the Pomeranian ice‐marginal position within their respective regional geomorphological contexts. From a process‐based point of view, SED ages derived from glacigenic boulders document the stabilization of the landscape after melting of dead ice and landscape transformation under periglacial conditions rather than the presence of an ice margin. SED indicates a first phase of boulder stabilization at around 16.4±0.7 ka, followed by landscape stabilization within the area attributed to the recessional Gerswalder subphase around 15.2±0.5 ka. A final phase of accumulation of glaciolacustrine and glaciofluvial sediments at around 14.7±1.0 ka documents the melting of buried dead ice at that time.     

Mass spectrometric U-series dating of the Chaoxian hominin site at Yinshan,eastern China

The fossils of Chaoxian hominin, widely accepted as representing archaic Homo sapiens in eastern China, were recovered from the middle or slightly higher levels of Layer 2 deposits of a collapsed cave at Yinshan, Anhui Province. Results of mass spectrometric U-series dating of intercalated speleothem calcites are presented. Based mainly on four broadly coeval calcite samples, the hominin fossils should be bracketed in the range of 310–360 ka or somewhat older. These ages are much older than the previous estimate at 160–200 ka based on the U-series dating of fossil teeth and bones, and may be cited as supporting evidence for an earlier H. erectus–archaic H. sapiens interface in China.     

A precisely‐dated lake‐level rise marked by diatomite formation in northeastern Ireland

The intercorrelation of palaeoclimate events from various studies is often hindered by a lack of precise chronological control. Tephra isochrons can overcome this problem by providing direct site linkages. This paper outlines a study of Holocene peat and diatomite deposits that accumulated within the floodplain of Lough Neagh, Northern Ireland. The Icelandic Hekla 4 tephra has been identified at the base of diatomite deposits at a number of sites and provides firm dating evidence for a widespread flooding event in the area at ca. 2300 BC . The evidence is consistent with other studies in Ireland and elsewhere for increased wetness at this time. The results demonstrate that the terrestrial deposits around Lough Neagh contain an important record of Holocene lake‐level change. Dendrochronological evidence from the Lough Neagh area provides additional information about lake‐level fluctuations over the past two millennia. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

OSL dating of the Middle Palaeolithic Hotel California site,Sierra de Atapuerca,north‐central Spain

In this study we present optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating results obtained at one of the most important open‐air Middle Palaeolithic sites in the Sierra de Atapuerca foothills – Hotel California. We also assess the possibility of obtaining extended‐range OSL chronologies for a nearby Middle Pleistocene fluvial deposit using several novel methods, namely OSL dating of individual quartz ‘supergrains’, multi‐grain aliquot thermally transferred OSL (TT‐OSL) dating and the first application of a single‐grain TT‐OSL dating procedure. Four single‐grain OSL ages constrain the Middle Palaeolithic occupation of Hotel California to between 71±6 and 48±3 ka. The Hotel California single‐grain equivalent dose (D_e) distributions are highly overdispersed and contain several dose populations, which are probably attributable to post‐depositional sediment mixing, partial bleaching and intrinsic scatter. The reliability of multi‐grain aliquot OSL dating is compromised by the complex underlying D_e dispersion affecting these samples, as well as by biasing multi‐grain averaging effects. Extended‐range OSL and TT‐OSL chronologies for the nearby Pico River terrace are consistent with each other and with broad independent age control. These experimental approaches yield a weighted average age of 348±16 ka for terrace T_A9 of the Arlanzón River sequence. Our results highlight the benefits of comparing ages obtained using several OSL methodologies to improve the robustness of luminescence chronologies. They also demonstrate the potential that single‐grain OSL techniques offer for establishing improved age constraints on the many other Middle Palaeolithic sites found at Atapuerca and elsewhere across north‐central Spain.