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Helena Alexandersson

Helena Alexanderson

Professor

Helena Alexandersson

Problems and potential of OSL dating Weichselian and Holocene sediments in Sweden

Author

  • Helena Alexanderson
  • Andrew Murray

Summary, in English

Recent OSL dating of various Late Quaternary deposits in Sweden has resulted in several sets of ages that appear inconsistent with geological interpretation; they usually overestimate the expected age. We explore the problems and potential of OSL-dating in Sweden by analysing quartz-OSL-ages from several known-age sites in Sweden and by investigating their luminescence properties. Two difficulties in obtaining accurate and precise ages are incomplete bleaching and low-sensitivity quartz. Incomplete bleaching can give rise to age overestimation, but the importance of this effect can be minimised by selecting suitable sediment facies, although for some settings unexplained overestimates still remain. Low quartz OSL sensitivity leads to practical problems in measurements and larger uncertainties in dose estimates, but not necessarily to systematic age overestimation. Sites that contain Dala sandstone clasts and/or sediments that may have had extensive reworking during the Quaternary seem to provide high-sensitivity quartz. We consider such sites to show the most potential for accurate and precise OSL-dating in Sweden.

Department/s

  • Quaternary Sciences

Publishing year

2012

Language

English

Pages

37-50

Publication/Series

Quaternary Science Reviews

Volume

44

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Elsevier

Topic

  • Geology

Status

Published

Research group

  • Lund Luminescence Laboratory

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0277-3791