Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods

Living Edition
| Editors: W. Jack Rink, Jeroen Thompson

Luminescence, Coastal Sediments

  • Barbara Mauz
Living reference work entry
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6326-5_7-4
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Definition

Luminescence. Light emitted by an irradiated semiconductor during exposure to light or heat. The light intensity emitted by the semiconductor is a function of the absorbed dose.

Luminescence dating technique. Dosimetric technique which determines the amount of absorbed dose in a dosimeter (semiconductor) such as quartz and feldspar and the rate of dose to which the dosimeter was exposed before the moment of sampling.

Coastal sediments. Deposits in the zone near where land and sea meet.

Introduction

Luminescence dating technique relies on the absorption of radiation dose in siliciclastic minerals such as quartz and feldspar. When the grains of these minerals are exposed to daylight for a sufficient length of time during sediment transport and deposition, the luminescence clock of the dosimeter is reset to zero. Besides sufficient resetting, the accuracy of a luminescence age of a coastal deposit depends upon sediment composition, the nature of wetting and drying, and the...

Keywords

Dose Rate Suspended Sediment Concentration Coastal Sediment Coastal Deposit Luminescence Date 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.School of Environmental SciencesUniversity of LiverpoolLiverpoolUK