Investigation on non-optically bleachable components of ESR aluminium signal in quartz

Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) can be used as a method to estimate the age of sediment deposition using the paramagnetic centre related to aluminium impurities in quartz. This so-called Al-centre can be partially optically bleached and its signal intensity decreases in relation to time exposure to solar light, until it reaches a plateau value corresponding to a residual signal. This signal can be attributed to “Deep Aluminium Traps” (DAT) which cannot be reset by an exposure to sunlight. In this study, we have investigated the behaviour of the DAT signal in samples from different origins and ages. The intensity of the DAT signal has been isolated from the total aluminium signal by the exposure of different quartz samples to simulated solar light. We observed that the DAT intensities were sample dependant and therefore it should be determined for each sample. Moreover, DAT intensities of Pleistocene volcanic quartz increase with gamma laboratory irradiation, whereas DAT intensities of sedimentary quartz do not vary with added artificial doses. This suggests that DAT in quartz extracted from sediments must be inherited from the primary source of the quartz, and were saturated at the time of sedimentation. We thereby validate the ESR dating of quartz sediment protocol used so far.

► Residual dose of Al-signal in quartz is due to Deep Aluminium Traps.
► Residual dose is sample dependant.
► Residual dose must be determined in each quartz for ESR dating of sediments.
► DAT intensities increase with irradiation in young volcanic quartz.
► DAT in quartz extracted from fluvial sediments are saturated.