Radiometric Dating

“…the exponential decay-law … is the cornerstone on which the common measurement system of radioactivity is built.”
Pomme, et al. (2018)^{[3, p.6]}

“The radioactive decay law was first formulated by Ernest Rutherford and Frederick Soddy in 1902.”
S. K. Eastmond (2020)^[10]

Radiometric dating was invented in 1905 by Ernest Rutherford.

Useful abbreviations for years:
Ka = Kiloannum (1,000 years)
Ma = ? annum (1,000,000 years)
Ga = Gigaannum (1,000,000,000 years)

The methods of radiometric dating are:

Argon-argon (Ar-Ar) was invented by Grenville Turner in the 1960’s (?).
Applicable age range:

Beryllium (Surface exporsure?) (¹⁰Be–⁹Be)

Beryllium10-Boron10
Half-life: 1.52 million^[8]

Chlorine-36
Half-life: 300,000^[8]

Fission track
Applicable age range: 1,000-billion of years^[5]

Iodine-xenon (I-Xe)
Applicable age range:

Krypton-krypton (Kr-Kr)
Applicable age range:

Lanthanum-barium (La-Ba)
Applicable age range:

Lead-lead (Pb-Pb)
Applicable age range:

Luminescence
Applicable age range: 1,000-1,000,000^[5]

Lutetium-hafnium (Lu-Hf)
Half-life: 38 billion^[8]
Applicable age range:

Potassium-argon (K-Ar) was invented in the 1920’s and 1930’s.^[1]
Half-life: 1.3 Ga,^[7] 1.26 billion^[8]
Applicable age range: 1,000-billion of years,^[5] 10 Ka to 4.57 Ga^[7]

Potassium-calcium (K-Ca)
Applicable age range:

Radiocarbon (C-14) dating was invented by Willard Libby in 1946.
Half-life: 5,730 years,^{[6], [7], [9]} 5,715 years^[8]
Applicable age range: 100-50,000 years,^[4] 1-70,000 years,^[5] 100-70,000 years,^[6] 100-60,000 years,^[7] <55,000 years^[9]

Rhenium-osmium (Re-Os)
Half-life: 42 billion^[8]
Applicable age range:

Rubidium-strontium was invented in the 1930’s and 1940’s.^[2]
Half-life: 47 Ga,^[7] 48.8 billion^[8]
Applicable age range: 10 Ma to 4.57 Ga^[7]

Samarium-neodymium
Half-life: 106 billion^[8]
Applicable age range:

Thorium-Lead
Half-life: 14 billion^[8]

Thorium-Radium
Half-life: 75,400^[8]

Uranium-lead
Half-life: 4.5 Ga,^[7]
Applicable age range: 10,000-billion,^[5] 1 Ma to 4.57 Ga^[7]

Uranium238-Lead206
Half-life: 4.5 billion^[8]

Uranium235-Lead207
Half-life: 0.7 billion^[8]

Uranium-thorium
Half-life: 248,000^[8]
Applicable age range: 1,000-500,000^[5]

References:

[1] – https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-87895-4_1#:~:text=In%201935%2C%20Klemperer%20and%2C%20independently,4%20of%20the%20total%20K.. Accessed 29 August 2020.

[2] – https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-009-2611-0_4#:~:text=Campbell%20and%20A.,identified%20as%20the%20relevant%20radioisotope.&text=Otto%20Hahn%2C%20with%20E.,made%20by%20Hahn%20et%20al.. Accessed 29 August 2020.

[3] – Pomme, et al. “Is decay constant?” (April 2018). https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969804317303822. Accessed 1 Feb. 2021.

[4] – “Radiometric Age Dating” (October 3, 2018). https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/radiometric-age-dating.htm. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[5] – Peppe, D. J. & Deino, A. L. (2013) Dating Rocks and Fossils Using Geologic Methods. Nature Education Knowledge 4(10):1. https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/dating-rocks-and-fossils-using-geologic-methods-107924044/. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[6] – Prof. Stephen A. Nelson. “Radiometric Dating” (18-Apr-2012). https://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/eens212/radiometric_dating.htm. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[7] – Stephen Earle. “Physical Geography – Second Edition” (2019). https://opentextbc.ca/physicalgeology2ed/chapter/8-4-isotopic-dating-methods/. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[8] – Dr. Roger C. Wiens. “Radiometric Dating: A Christian Perspective” (2002). https://www.asa3.org/ASA/resources/Wiens.html#page%204. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[9] – Jennifer Leman. “Murder! Espionage! Cosmic Rays! The History of Carbon-14 Is Way More Thrilling Than You Think” (25 Feb. 2020). https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/archaeology/a31043027/carbon-14-history/. Accessed 27 Feb. 2021.

[10] – Shawn K. Eastmond. “Quantum Calculus (q = e h ) and the Radioctive Decay Law” (March 2020). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340266914_Quantum_Calculus_q_e_h_and_the_Radioctive_Decay_Law. Accessed 7 Mar. 2021.

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