Developments in optically stimulated luminescence and photo-transferred thermoluminescence dating of young sediments: Application to a 2000-year sequence of flood deposits

This paper demonstrates how optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and photo-transferred thermoluminescence (PTTL) can be used to date young (0–2000 year-old) flood deposits on the bank of a major river in the Southern Tablelands of southeastern Australia. Quartz grains extracted from these deposits do not show a detectable dose-dependent sensitivity change following optical stimulation. This allows a recently proposed regeneration-based protocol (SARA) to be used to estimate the equivalent dose (De) acquired since burial. For the oldest sample, a dependence of De on pre-heat temperature is removed by heating to at least 180 °C for 10 s before stimulation. Values of De are reported for six samples using both OSL and PTTL. Values ranged between 0.4 and 6.5 Gy, with overall uncertainties usually <7%; the values of De obtained using OSL and PTTL are in agreement. Dose rates are calculated from detailed analyses of environmental radionuclide concentrations, and the resulting luminescence dates range from 100 ± 13 to 1920 ± 130 years before present; the uncertainties include systematic effects. For two layers where there is age control by 14C dates, the luminescence dates are in good agreement. Unfortunately, the limitations of the 14C data preclude firm conclusions about the size of any effective age-residual at deposition for the luminescence samples, although this is likely to be <50–100 years. It is concluded that luminescence dating offers a considerable improvement over other techniques, including 14C, for recently transported fluvial sediments.