About Radiogenic Isotope Facility

The Radiogenic Isotope Facility (RIF) in the Department of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta features several Class 100 cleanroom (including Class 10 workstations) laboratories used for the chemical separation of various elements prior to mass spectrometer analysis. The mass spectrometer laboratory houses two thermal ionization (solid source) instruments - a Vacuum Generators VG354 and a Micromass Sector54.

The facility has recently installed a NuPlasma Multi-Collector ICP Mass Spectrometer equipped with a New Wave Research UP-213 laser ablation system. The RIF offers analyses in a wide range of isotope systems, including U-Pb geochronology on minerals such as zircon, titanite, monazite and baddeleyite, as well as Cd, Rb-Sr, Sm-Nd, Lu-Hf, Pb-Pb, and Re-Os analyses of rocks, minerals, ores and other samples.

In addition, current research projects involving in-situ analyses using the laser ablation-MC-ICP-MS configuration include: Hf isotopic characterization and U-Pb dating of detrital zircon populations, Sr isotopic investigations of fossilized teeth and mantle (e.g. clinopyroxene) and magmatic minerals (e.g. perovskite), and common Pb studies of various low abundance Pb (<1 ppm) minerals. Usage of the RIF includes local, national, and international scientific collaborators, government agencies, and commercial users.