Osl dating archaeology

How accurate is the OSL dating method?

The significant improvement of the OSL dating method in recent years makes it applicable to objects ranging in age from 0 to 150 000 years (in some cases to 300 000 or more) with a typical accuracy between 5 and 10%.

What is the OSL method in archaeology?

In archaeology the OSL method is used to date pottery and other heated materials (e.g., bricks, stones, earth) or sediments related to archaeological finds.

What does OSL stand for?

Department of Radioisotopes, Institute of Physics Silesian University of Technology Gliwice The OSL (optically stimulated luminescence) dating method exploits dosimetric properties of grains of minerals naturally occurring in sediments and man-made materials.

What is the uncertainty of an OSL date?

The uncertainty of an OSL date is typically 5-10% of the age of the sample. There are two different methods of OSL dating: multiple-aliquot-dose and single-aliquot-regenerative-dose (SAR). In multiple-aliquot testing, a number of grains of sand are stimulated at the same time and the resulting luminescence signature is averaged.

What is the difference between radiocarbon dating and OSL?

The difference between radiocarbon dating and OSL is that the former is used to date organic materials, while the latter is used to date minerals. Events that can be dated using OSL are, for example, the minerals last exposure to sunlight; Mungo Man, Australias oldest human find, was dated in this manner.

What is optically stimulated luminescence (OSL)?

In physics, optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) is a method for measuring doses from ionizing radiation. It is used in at least two applications: Luminescence dating of ancient materials: mainly geological sediments and sometimes fired pottery, bricks etc., although in the latter case thermoluminescence dating is used more often