TIMS Lab

Thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) is an analytical method for high-precision measurements of isotope ratios and isotope abundances of elements that are easy to ionize. In geology, the method is mostly applied to measure the isotope abundances of radiogenic isotopes (which in nature often strongly varies) in relation to stable isotopes of the same element. Radiogenic isotopes are the decay products of long-lived radioactive isotopes (e.g. ⁸⁷Rb, ¹⁴⁷Sm or ²³⁸U). We apply this method to constrain ages of rocks and to use radiogenic isotopes as a tracer for mass transport during surface and subsurface processes.
We measure isotope ratios of elements with low ionization energy as positive ions (e.g., Sr, Nd, Pb). Some isotope ratios of elements that are not easy to ionize can also be measured using TIMS if boundary conditions are modified. Here, the many elements can be measured as negatively charged ions, e.g., BO₂⁻, OsO₃⁻, ReO₄⁻, Se⁻, Te⁻.
In our TIMS lab, we measure radiogenic isotopes of Sr, Nd, and Pb. For cosmochemical applications, the variations of stable and radiogenic isotopes of Cr and Ba are also analyzed.
Moreover, in combination with the isotope dilution method we also use TIMS to determine the precise concentrations of various elements. At FU Berlin, we determine Rb, Sr, Sm, Nd, U, Pb, and Os concentrations for radiometric dating using TIMS.