Marcus Christl: Catalogue data in Autumn Semester 2020 |
| Name | Dr. Marcus Christl |
| Address | Labor für Ionenstrahlphysik (LIP) ETH Zürich, HPK H 33 Otto-Stern-Weg 5 8093 Zürich SWITZERLAND |
| Telephone | +41 44 633 38 84 |
| mchristl@phys.ethz.ch | |
| Department | Physics |
| Relationship | Lecturer |
| Number | Title | ECTS | Hours | Lecturers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 402-0620-00L | Current Topics in Accelerator Mass Spectrometry and Its Applicatons | 0 credits | 1S | M. Christl, S. Willett | |
| Abstract | The seminar is aimed at all students who, during their studies, are confronted with age determination methods based on long-living radionuclides found in nature. Basic methodology, the latest developments, and special examples from a wide range of applications will be discussed. | ||||
| Learning objective | The seminar provides the participants an overview about newest trends and developments of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) and related applications. In their talks and subsequent discussions the participants learn intensively about the newest trends in the field of AMS thus attaining a broad knowledge on both, the physical principles and the applications of AMS, which goes far beyond the horizon of their own studies. | ||||
| 651-4191-00L | Radionuclides as Environmental Tracers | 3 credits | 2V | M. Christl, N. Casacuberta Arola, L. Wacker, C. Welte | |
| Abstract | Radionuclides stemming from natural and artificial sources are powerful tools that allow gaining a better understanding of a large range of environmental processes. This course will focus on cosmogenic and anthropogenic radionuclides and will provide a general overview about common applications and the use of tracers in the environment, e.g. to understand past climatic changes and ocean currents. | ||||
| Learning objective | Students learn the basic facts about sources and fate of natural and artificial long-lived radionuclides (e.g. 14C, 26Al, 10Be, 129I 236U, Pu-isotopes, etc.). They gain insights into the different detection techniques, with special focus on accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). A selection of the numerous applications of the different radionuclides in oceanic, atmospheric and terrestrial processes will be studied. | ||||
| Content | The course will include lectures, practical exercises and two excursions, namely the opportunity to visit the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) and the AMS facilities at ETH (Laboratory of Ion Beam Physics). Lectures will cover: - an introduction to natural and artificial radionuclides; - a general overview of radionuclide detection, in particular AMS will be studied including a tour to the Laboratory of Ion Beam Physics; - applications of long-lived radionuclides in the different environmental compartments (oceans, atmosphere and terrestrial environments): o The use of 14C in oceanic, atmospheric and terrestrial studies including a tour to the WSL labs; o applications of 10Be in ice cores and marine sediments; o applications of nuclear wastes from nuclear accidents (e.g. Fukushima); o controlled releases from nuclear reprocessing plants and their role in understanding oceanic processes. Exercise classes will include an introduction to the Ocean Data View and basic course in applying box models to describe transport and mixing processes. As an evaluation, students will have to hand in a series of exercises related to the different topics of the lecture. | ||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | The content of this course is interdisciplinary and it will benefit from students coming from different fields. Two lab tours are organized. This course is also well suited for Ph.D. students. Students will need to bring their own computer that allow installing Ocean Data View. | ||||
| 651-4901-00L | Quaternary Dating Methods  | 3 credits | 2G | I. Hajdas, M. Christl, S. Ivy Ochs | |
| Abstract | Reconstruction of time scales is critical for all Quaternary studies in both Geology and Archeology. Various methods are applied depending on the time range of interest and the archive studied. In this lecture, we focus on the last 50 ka and the methods that are most frequently used for dating Quaternary sediments and landforms in this time range. | ||||
| Learning objective | Students will be made familiar with the details of the six dating methods through lectures on basic principles, analysis of case studies, solving of problem sets for age calculation and visits to dating laboratories. At the end of the course students will: 1. understand the fundamental principles of the most frequently used dating methods for Quaternary studies. 2. be able to calculate an age based on data of the six methods studied. 3. choose which dating method (or combination of methods) is suitable for a certain field problem. 4. critically read and evaluate the application of dating methods in scientific publications. | ||||
| Content | 1. Introduction: Time scales for the Quaternary, Isotopes and decay 2. Radiocarbon dating: principles and applications 3. Cosmogenic nuclides: 3He,10Be, 14C, 21Ne, 26Cl, 36Cl 4. U-series disequilibrium dating 5. Luminescence dating 6. Introduction to incremental: varve counting, dendrochronology and ice cores chronologies 7. Cs-137 and Pb-210 (soil, sediments, ice core) 8. Summary and comparison of results from several dating methods at specific sites | ||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | Visit to radiocarbon lab, cosmogenic nuclide lab, accelerator (AMS) facility. Visit to Limno Lab and sampling a sediment core Optional (individual): 1-5 days hands-on radiocarbon dating at the C14 lab at ETH Hoenggerebrg Required: attending the lecture, visiting laboratories, handing back solutions for problem sets (Exercises) | ||||