List of accelerator mass spectrometry facilities
Encyclopedia
The following list of accelerator mass spectrometry facilities sets out the research centres which employ accelerator mass spectrometry
(AMS).
Accelerator mass spectrometry is a form of mass spectrometry that accelerates ions to extraordinarily high kinetic energies before mass analysis. L.W. Alvarez and Robert Cornog
of the United States first used an accelerator as a mass spectrometer in 1939 when they employed a cyclotron
to demonstrate that 3He was stable; from this observation, they immediately (and correctly) concluded that the other mass-3 isotope tritium
was radioactive.
Accelerator mass spectrometry
Accelerator mass spectrometry differs from other forms of mass spectrometry in that it accelerates ions to extraordinarily high kinetic energies before mass analysis. The special strength of AMS among the mass spectrometric methods is its power to separate a rare isotope from an abundant...
(AMS).
Accelerator mass spectrometry is a form of mass spectrometry that accelerates ions to extraordinarily high kinetic energies before mass analysis. L.W. Alvarez and Robert Cornog
Robert Cornog
Robert Alden Cornog , was a physicist and engineer who helped develop the atomic bomb and missile systems from the Snark to the Minuteman....
of the United States first used an accelerator as a mass spectrometer in 1939 when they employed a cyclotron
Cyclotron
In technology, a cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator. In physics, the cyclotron frequency or gyrofrequency is the frequency of a charged particle moving perpendicularly to the direction of a uniform magnetic field, i.e. a magnetic field of constant magnitude and direction...
to demonstrate that 3He was stable; from this observation, they immediately (and correctly) concluded that the other mass-3 isotope tritium
Tritium
Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. The nucleus of tritium contains one proton and two neutrons, whereas the nucleus of protium contains one proton and no neutrons...
was radioactive.
Facilities
Please note that this list is not complete yet. There are about 180 AMS facilities in the world.Africa
- iThemba Laboratory for Accelerator Based Sciences (www.tlabs.ac.za) , JohannesburgJohannesburgJohannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
America
- Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (CAMS) at the Lawrence Livermore National LaboratoryLawrence Livermore National LaboratoryThe Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , just outside Livermore, California, is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center founded by the University of California in 1952...
- National Ocean Sciences Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (NOSAMS) Facility at Woods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionWoods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionThe Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
- Beta Analytic Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Facility in Miami, Florida
- Purdue Rare Isotope Measurement Laboratory at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana
- Trace Element Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (TEAMS) at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC
- MegaSIMS at the University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los AngelesThe University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
in Los Angeles, CA - NSF - Arizona Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) LaboratoryNSF - Arizona Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) LaboratoryArizona Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Laboratory focuses on the study of cosmogenic isotopes, and in particular the study of radiocarbon, or Carbon-14. As a laboratory, part of its aim is to function as a research center, training center, and general community resource. Its stated mission is...
- W.M. Keck Carbon Cycle Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (KCCAMS) Facility at the University of California, IrvineUniversity of California, IrvineThe University of California, Irvine , founded in 1965, is one of the ten campuses of the University of California, located in Irvine, California, USA...
Asia
- Xi'anXi'anXi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...
AMS Center - Tandem accelerator for Environmental Research and Radiocarbon Analysis (NIES-TERRA) of the National Institute for Environmental StudiesNational Institute for Environmental StudiesThe National Institute for Environmental Studies was established in 1974 as a focal point for environmental research in Japan...
(NIES), Tsukuba, Japan
Europe
- Beta Analytic Europe in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
- CEREGE in Aix en Provence, France
- Lund Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Facility at Lund UniversityLund UniversityLund University , located in the city of Lund in the province of Scania, Sweden, is one of northern Europe's most prestigious universities and one of Scandinavia's largest institutions for education and research, frequently ranked among the world's top 100 universities...
, Sweden - Ion Beam Physics Laboratory of the ETH ZurichETH ZurichThe Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....
and the Paul Scherrer InstitutePaul Scherrer InstituteThe Paul Scherrer Institute is a multi-disciplinary research institute which belongs to the Swiss ETH-Komplex covering also the ETH Zurich and EPFL...
, Switzerland - Vienna Environmental Research AcceleratorVienna Environmental Research AcceleratorThe Vienna Environmental Research Accelerator, VERA, is a particle accelerator. It is operated by the University of Vienna and is dedicated to Accelerator Mass Spectrometry . It started operation in 1995...
(VERA) at the University of ViennaUniversity of ViennaThe University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
, Austria - Centre for Dating and Diagnostics (CEDAD), University of Salento, Italy http://www.cedad.unisalento.it
- Centre for Isotopic Research on Cultural and Environmental heritage (CIRCE), INNOVA and 2nd University of Naples, Italy
- NERC Recognised Accelerator Mass Spectrometer at SUERC, Scotland
- http://www.rug.nl/ees/onderzoek/cio/projecten/radiocarbon/radiocarbonams/index Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, The Netherlands
External links
- C-14 Information and Labs (radiocarbon.org)
- Tandetron Accelerator Mass Spectrometers (highvolteng.com)
- Labs with Pelletrons (pelletron.com)
- AMS Laboratories. University of Arizona. Tucson, AZ.