Isotopes: Principles and Applications
The leading textbook and professional resource on isotope geochemistry–completely updated and expandedSince its initial publication as Principles of Isotope Geology in 1977, this has been the most widely used comprehensive textbook in upper-level isotope geochemistry courses. Now in its Third Edition, Isotopes: Principles and Applications has been thoroughly updated, rewritten, reorganized, and expanded to include more than twice the content of its predecessor.Covering radiogenic, radioactive, and stable isotopes, this volume consists of five units that present fundamentals of atomic physics; dating methods for terrestrial and extraterrestrial rocks by means of radiogenic isotopes; geochemistry of radiogenic isotopes; dating by means of U, Th-series and cosmogenic radionuclides; and the fractionation of the stable isotopes of H, C, N, O, and S, as well as Li, B, Si, and Cl. Additionally, this edition provides:Expanded coverage of the U-Pb methods –the most accurate available dating techniqueApplications to the petrogenesis of igneous rocksSummaries of the use of isotopic data for study of the oceansNew examples from the fields of archeology and anthropologyRadiation-damage methods of dating including fission tracks, thermoluminescence, and electron spin resonance (ESR)Information on the dispersal of fission-product radionuclides and the disposal of radioactive wasteExtensive chapter-by-chapter problems and solutionsSupplemented with summaries and references in each chapter, as well as more than 450 drawings and 100 tables, this volume remains the leading resource in isotope geoscience. Broad applications in many other areas –including geochemistry, geology, meteoritics, physics, chemistry, and biology –make it indispensable throughout the natural sciences.