Western Australia speleotherm
Former postdoc Pauline Treble collects a speleothem from a cave in Western Australia for analysis by ion microprobe.

Enviromental Tracers

Use of SIMS in tracing environmental factors

SIMS can determine trace element distributions for a number of elements which are useful for environmental studies. These applications can range from determining past climates from δ18O in speleotherms to reconstruction of Salmon life history.

Some UCLA SIMS papers relating to environmental tracers / paleo-environment

P.C. Treble, A.K. Schmitt, K.D. McKeegan, R.L. Edwards, M. Grove, T.M. Harrison, and H. Cheng. (2007) High resolution secondary ionization mass spectrometry (SIMS) δ18O analyses of Hulu Cave speleotherm at time of Heinrich event I.Chem. Geol.

A.L. Rinderknecht, M.T. Kleinman, and J.E. Ericson (2005) Pb enamel biomarker: Deposition ofpre- and postnatal Pb isotope injection in reconstructed time points along rat enamel transect. Environ. Res. 99, 169-176.

P.C. Treble, J.C. Chappell, M.K. Gagan, K.D. McKeegan, and T.M. Harrison (2005) In situ measurement of seasonal δ18O variations and analysis of isotopic trends in a precisely dated modern speleothem from southwest Australia.Earth Planet. Sci. Letts. 233, 17-32.

H.B. Zou, K.D. McKeegan, X.S. Xu, and A. Zindler (2004) Fe-Al-rich tridymite-hercynite xenoliths with positive cerium anomalies: Preserved lateritic paleosols and implications for Miocene climate. Chem. Geol. 207, 101-116.

Y. Kolodny, M. Bar-Matthews, A. Ayalon, and K.D. McKeegan (2003) A high spatial resolution δ18O profile of a speleothem using an ion-microprobe. Chem. Geol., 197, 21-28.

S.J. Mojzsis, C.D. Coath, J.P. Greenwood, K.D. McKeegan, and T.M. Harrison (2003) Confirmation of mass-independent isotope effects in Archean (2.5 - 3.8Ga) sedimentary sulfides as determined by ion microprobe analysis. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 67, 1635-1658.

J. Farquhar, B. A. Wing, K. D. McKeegan, J. W. Harris, P. Cartigny, and M. H. Thiemens (2002) Mass-independent sulfur of inclusions in diamond and sulfur recycling on early earth. Science 298(5602), 2369-2372.

M. Fayek, T.M. Harrison, R.C. Ewing, M. Grove, and C.D. Coath (2002) O and Pb isotopic analyses of uranium minerals by ion microprobe and U-Pb ages from the Cigar Lake deposit.Chem. Geol. 185, 205-225.

P. K. Weber, I. D. Hutcheon, K. D. McKeegan, and B. L. Ingram (2002) Otolith sulfur isotope method to reconstruct salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) life history. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 59, 587-591.

S.J. Mojzsis, T.M. Harrison, and R.T. Pidgeon (2001) Oxygen-isotope evidence from ancient zircons for liquid water at the Earth's surface 4300 Myr ago. Nature 409, 178-181.