Erlangen 2022 – scientific programme
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Q: Fachverband Quantenoptik und Photonik
Q 43: Quantum Technologies
Q 43.7: Poster
Wednesday, March 16, 2022, 16:30–18:30, P
Argon Trap Trace Analysis: Working principle of the applied Quantum Technology and its dating application in Oman’s groundwater — •Florian Meienburg1,2, Julian Robertz1, Yannis Arck2, David Wachs1,2, Martin Stute4, AN Paukert Vankeuren5, Juerg M. Matter6,4, Markus Oberthaler1, and Werner Aeschbach2,3 — 1Kirchhoff Institute for Physics, Heidelberg, Germany — 2Institute of Environmental Physics, Heidelberg, Germany — 3Heidelberg Center for the Environment, Heidelberg, Germany — 4Columbia University, Palisades, USA — 5California State University Sacramento, Sacramento, USA — 6University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
Radioisotopes are a widely used and important tool for dating environmental systems. The half-life of 269 years, a constant input function and its chemical inertness render 39Ar a valuable tracer for dating between 50 and 1000 years. This time scale corresponds to processes like ocean circulation, deeper groundwater flow or the flow of alpine glaciers. However, a very small abundance in the range of 10−16 requires an ultra-sensitive and highly selective detection method which is achieved by the Quantum Technology Argon Trap Trace Analysis (ArTTA). The slightly different resonance frequencies of the isotopes together with multiple resonant scattering processes allows to detect single 39Ar atoms in a magneto-optical trap (MOT).
In addition to the important features of this spectroscopy technique, the poster will present a groundwater study in the Sultanate of Oman in the context of carbon sequestration as an application of ArTTA.