Astronomical calibration of Ar-40/Ar-39 reference minerals using high-precision, multi-collector (ARGUSVI) mass spectrometry

Abstract

The new generation of multi-collector mass spectrometers (e.g. ARGUSVI) permit ultra-high precision (1%) in 40K decay constants and the ages of natural reference minerals that form the basis of the technique. For example, reported ages for widely used 40Ar/39Ar reference materials, such as the ca. 28 Ma Fish Canyon Tuff sanidine (FCTs) and the ca. 1.2 Ma Alder Creek Rhyolite sanidine (ACRs), vary by >1%. Recent attempts to independently calibrate these reference minerals have focused on K–Ar analyses of the same minerals and inter-comparisons with astronomically tuned tephras in sedimentary sequences and U–Pb zircon ages from volcanic rocks. Most of these studies used older generation (effec..