Acid leaching is used to remove radiation-damaged portions of zircon crystals prior to U–Pb dating to improve the accuracy of datasets. We test how the temperature and duration of acid leaching affect geochronological and geochemical outcomes. We build a framework that relates radiation damage, zircon solubility, and Pb loss.

Radiometric dating methods, involving laser ablation as the sample introduction, require robust calibrations to reference materials with similar ablation properties to the analysed samples. In the case of the rubidium–strontium dating method, calibrations are often conducted to nano powder with different ablation characteristics than the crystalline minerals. We describe the limitations of this approach and recommend an alternative calibration method involving natural minerals.

The mineral zircon is widely used to determine the age of rocks based on the radioactive decay of U to Pb, but the measured U–Pb date can be too young if the zircon loses Pb. We present a method for estimating the distribution of apparent Pb loss by mathematical convolution. Applying this approach to 10 samples illustrates contrasting patterns of apparent Pb loss. This study highlights the importance of quantifying Pb loss to better understand its potential effects on zircon U–Pb dates.

This study tested the application of single-grain feldspar luminescence for dating and reconstructing sediment dynamics of an extreme mass movement event in the Himalayan mountain range. Our analysis revealed that feldspar signals can be used to estimate the age range of the deposits if the youngest subpopulation from a sample is retrieved. The absence of clear spatial relationships with our bleaching proxies suggests that sediments were transported under extremely limited light exposure.

We describe a new method of reconstructing the long-term, pre-observational frequency and/or intensity of wildfires in forested landscapes using trace concentrations of the noble gases helium and neon that are formed in soil mineral grains by cosmic-ray bombardment of the Earth's surface.

This is a preliminary study using a synchrotron light source to generate elemental maps, incorporating oxidation states, with a spatial resolution of <1 µm for individual grains within the K-feldspar density fraction. The elemental fingerprint characterizing grains with a signal suitable for infrared radiofluorescence dating reveals high levels of K, Pb, and Ba coupled with low levels of Fe and Ca. In contrast, grains exhibiting higher proportions of Fe and Ca produce an odd signal shape.

Chemical abrasion (CA) is a technique that reduces or eliminates the effects of Pb loss in zircon U–Pb geochronology. However, CA has yet to be applied to large-n detrital zircon (DZ) analyses. We show that CA does not negatively impact or systematically bias U–Pb dates, improves the resolution of age populations defined by ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U dates, and increases the percentage of concordant analyses in age populations defined by ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb dates.

Developing models that relate stratigraphic position to time are important because they allow the rock record to be understood in terms of absolute time, allowing global comparisons. We developed a novel method for developing these models (called age–depth models) that uses two different types of chronologic information, dated rocks, and records of variations in the Earth's orbit (astrochronology). The resulting models are very precise, which can improve understanding of past climates.