Continental crust

The Earth’s crust is formed and continuously reworked by magmatic and metamorphic processes as a consequence of plate tectonics and by mantle plume activity. Our research is directed towards reconstructions of continental blocks (e.g. supercontinents), terrane analysis in time and space, and crustal growth through time. Our research is done in close collaboration with international research groups, in which our expertise comprises high-resolution geochemical and isotopic analysis of minerals and rocks. Reconstruction of supercontinents is done by matching major coeval dyke swarms and other components of large igneous provinces, which are subsequently tested and refined by investigating the rocks’ palaeomagnetic signatures. Metamorphic petrology is integrated with isotope geology and structural geology in order to constrain the dynamic evolution of continent collisional settings. All these studies use advanced chemical and geochronological analyses of minerals on the micro-scale. The main geochronological and petrogenetic tools we use are based on the U-Pb, Lu-Hf and Ar-Ar isotope systems, which provide information on the timing and the rate of processes involved in the evolution of Earth’s continental crust.