Abstract
Aluminium-26 (half life 7.16 × 105 yr) is one of the important radioisotopes generated from the spallation by cosmic rays of argon in the Earth's atmosphere. It has been used in studies1 of the growth rate of manganese nodules from the ocean floor and the constancy of the cosmic-ray intensity in the past2. At present, the concentration of 26Al (26Al/Al≤10−14) is measured in large samples by counting the γ rays following the β decay to 26Mg. We have now demonstrated that it is possible to separate 26Al and 26Mg atoms in milligramme samples with a sensitivity for the ratio 26Al/Al better than 10−14, using negative ions, a tandem accelerator as a molecular disintegrator, and a mass spectrometer3. The measurement of 26Al/10Be ratios using the same apparatus and small samples, to provide a several million year chronology4,5 for oceanic sediments, now seems possible.
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Kilius, L., Beukens, R., Chang, K. et al. Separation of 26Al and 26Mg isobars by negative ion mass spectrometry. Nature 282, 488–489 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1038/282488a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/282488a0
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