Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) Dating in the Amazonian Wetlands

Sonia Hatsue Tatumi · Dilce de Fátima Rossetti · Emílio Alberto Amaral Soares

Jul 2020 · Cambridge Scholars Publishing

About this eBook

Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating has proven to be extremely useful for establishing the Late Quaternary chronological framework in many areas of the Brazilian territory. In this region dominated by tropical climate, OSL dating can be more extensively applied than radiocarbon dating due to the generally low potential for the preservation of organic matter in sedimentary samples. This problem is especially critical in areas of the Amazonian lowlands, because of the hot climate and high precipitation rates. The abundance of quartz grains deposited in fluvial and aeolian environments over this region favours OSL dating. More than 20 years of continuous and collaborative work has resulted in the creation of an extensive OSL age database for Late Quaternary sedimentary deposits in the Amazonian lowlands. This effort has contributed to improving the paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic reconstructions of this region within this period. This book discusses the state of art of OSL dating of Late Quaternary deposits in the Amazonian lowlands, focusing on providing an introduction to dating principles using OSL, and defining the application of OSL techniques as a dating method. It also offers a statistical study and calculation of equivalent dose and annual dose rates, details the sampling and experimental apparatus, and considers the difficulties and adaptation techniques in dating Late Quaternary strata in the Amazonian lowlands.

About the author

Sonia Hatsue Tatumi is a Professor in the Marine Science Department of the Federal University of São Paulo, where she has been a faculty member since 2012. She completed her ScD at the same university and her PhD at São Paulo University. Her research interests lie in the area of OSL and the thermoluminescence (TL) of crystals applied to geochronology and environmental ionizing radiation dosimetry. She has published more than 80 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference proceedings and is a referee for 16 international journals.

Dilce de Fátima Rossetti, PhD, is a retired Researcher at the Brazilian Institute for Space Research (INPE). She is also a Researcher at the Brazilian National Science Council (CNPq) and a Full Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. Her research focuses on geomorphologic, stratigraphic and sedimentologic analyses of Amazonian basins, as well as basins of the Equatorial South Atlantic Brazilian Margin. She has published 155 peer-reviewed journal articles and 20 book chapters, and has presented her work at numerous meetings and conferences.

Emílio Alberto Amaral Soares is a Professor in the Department of Geosciences of the Federal University of Amazonas, Brazil. He obtained his Doctor of Science degree in the Geosciences Program from the University of São Paulo in 2007. His research focuses on stratigraphy and facies analysis of sedimentary successions in Amazonian areas.