Laser Laboratory for Trace Analysis and Precision Measurements

Reviews

• Cosmogenic nuclide techniques

  J.M. Schaefer et al.

  Nature Rev. Meth. Primer 2, 18 (2022)

• A critical review of state-of-the-art and emerging approaches to identify fracking-derived gases and associated contaminants in aquifers

  J. McIntosh et al.

  Environ. Sci. Tech. 53, 1063-1077 (2019)

• Radiokrypton dating coming of age

  Z.-T. Lu

  Nat. Sci. Rev. 3(2), 172-173 (2016)

• Tracer Applications of Noble Gas Radionuclides in the Geosciences

  Z.-T. Lu, P. Schlosser, W.M. Smethie Jr., N.C. Sturchio

  Earth-Sci. Rev. 138, 196-214 (2014)

• Kr-81 dating of old groundwater

  R. Purtschert, R. Yokochi, N.C. Sturchio, Chapter 5. In: Suckow A., Aggarwal P., Araguas-Araguas L., Eds.

  Isotope Methods for Dating Old Groundwater. IAEA, Vienna, p. 91-124 (2013)

• Tracing Noble Gas Radionuclides in the Environment

  P. Collon, W. Kutschera and Z.-T. Lu

  Ann. Rev. Nucl. Part. Sci. 54, 39 (2004)

• Laser-Based Methods for Ultrasensitive Trace-Isotope Analyses

  Z.-T. Lu and K.D.A. Wendt

  Rev. Sci. Instr. 74, 1169 (2003)

ATTA method

• Vacuum-ultraviolet light source for enhanced production of metastable krypton and xenon beams

  P. R. Stollenwerk et al.

  Phys. Rev. A 110, 053510 (2024)

• A magnetically enhanced RF discharge source for metastable krypton production

  J.-W. Yan, H. Li, W. Jiang, Z.-T. Lu, F. Ritterbusch, and G.-M. Yang

  Review of Scientific Instruments 94, 033202 (2023)

• Atom-Trap Trace Analysis of ⁴¹Ca/Ca down to the 10^-17 level

  T.-Y. Xia, W.-W. Sun, S. Ebser, W. Jiang, G.-M. Yang, H.-M. Zhu, Yun-Chong Fu, F. Huang, G.-D. Ming, T. Xia, and Z.-T. Lu

  Nature Physics 19, 904-908 (2023)

• Online monitoring of atmospheric krypton-85 with hourly time resolution

  Y.-Q. Chu, W.-H. Wang, X.-Z. Dong, C. Gao, J.-Q. Gu, S.-M. Hu, W. Jiang, S.-Y. Liu, Z.-T. Lu, F. Ritterbusch, G.-M. Yang, L. Zhao

  Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry (2023)

• Optically enhanced discharge excitation and trapping of ³⁹Ar

  Y.-Q. Chu et al.

  Phys. Rev. A 105, 063108 (2022)

• Generation of metastable krypton using a 124 nm laser

  X.-Z. Dong et al.

  Phys. Rev. A 105, L031101 (2022)

• Optical Excitation and Trapping of ⁸¹Kr

  J. S. Wang et al.

  Phys. Rev. Lett. 127, 023201 (2021)

• An atom trap system for ³⁹Ar dating with improved precision

  Amin L. Tong et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 92, 063204 (2021)

• Monitoring atmospheric ⁸⁵Kr by atom counting

  Chao Gao et al.

  Journal of Environmental Radioactivity 233, 106604 （2021）

• Enhanced detection limits for radiokrypton analysis

  Jake C. Zappala, Derek McLain, Peter Mueller, Jennifer L. Steeb

  Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 326, 1075-1079 (2020)

• Enhancement of the ⁸¹Kr and ⁸⁵Kr count rates by optical pumping

  Z. Y. Zhang et al.

  Phys. Rev. A 101, 053429 (2020)

• An electromagnetic separation system for the enrichment of ³⁹Ar

  Z. H. Jia et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 91, 033309 (2020)

• Atom trap trace analysis of krypton in xenon for the XENON Dark Matter Project

  E. Aprile et al.

  J. Instrum. 13, P10018 (2018)

• Laser-based metastable krypton generation

  M.A. Dakka et al.

  Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 093201 (2018)

• Rapid processing of ⁸⁵Kr/Kr ratios using Atom Trap Trace Analysis

  J. C. Zappala et al.

  Water Resour. Res. 53, 2553– 2558 (2017)

• Bichromatic force on metastable argon for atom-trap trace analysis

  Z. Feng et al.

  Phys. Rev. A 96, 013424 (2017)

• Ion Current as a Precise Measure of the Loading Rate of a Magneto-Optical Trap

  W. Jiang et al.

  Opt. Lett. 39, 409-412 (2014)

• Analysis of ⁸⁵Kr: a comparison at the 10^-14 level using micro-liter samples

  G.-M. Yang et al.

  Sci. Rep. 3, 1596 (2013)

• An atom counter for measuring ⁸¹Kr and ⁸⁵Kr in environmental samples

  W. Jiang et al.

  Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 91, 1-6 (2012)

• Ar-39 detection at 10^-16 isotopic abundance level with atom trap trace analysis

  W. Jiang et al.

  Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 103001 (2011)

• A thermal beam of metastable krypton atoms produced by optical excitation

  Y. Ding et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 78, 023103 (2007)

• Beam of metastable krypton atoms extracted from a microwave-driven discharge

  Y. Ding et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 77, 126105 (2006)

• An atom trap system for practical 81Kr-dating

  X. Du et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 75, 3224 (2004)

• Counting individual 41Ca atoms with a Magneto-Optical Trap

  D. Moore et al.

  Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 153002 (2004)

• A new method of measuring 81Kr and 85Kr abundances in environmental samples

  X. Du et al.

  Geophys. Res. Lett. 30, 2068 (2003)

• A Beam of Metastable Krypton Atoms Extracted from an RF-Driven Discharge

  C.Y. Chen et al.

  Rev. Sci. Instrum. 72, 271 (2001)

• Ultrasensitive isotope trace analyses with a magneto-optical trap

  C.Y. Chen et al.

  Science 286, 1139 (1999)

Sampling & Purification

• Developments of a field gas extraction device and krypton purification system for groundwater radio-krypton dating at the IAEA

  N. Romeo et al.

  Applied radiation and isotopes 189, 110450 (2022)

• In-situ sampling for krypton-85 groundwater dating

  S. Musy et al.

  J. Hydrology X 11, 100075 (2021)

• Dual Separation of Krypton and Argon from Environmental Samples for Radioisotope Dating

  X.-Z. Dong et al.

  Anal. Chem. 91, 21, 13576-13581 (2019)

• Optimization of a portable hollow-fiber-based device for extracting radiokrypton dissolved in deep groundwater and selection of ²²²Rn as an indicator of Kr extraction efficiency

  T. Ohta et al.

  J. Hydrology 574, 476–485 (2019)

• Field degassing as a new sampling method for ¹⁴C analyses in old groundwater

  R. Yokochi et al.

  Radiocarbon 60, 349 (2017)

• Recent developments on field gas extraction and sample preparation methods for radiokrypton dating of groundwater

  R. Yokochi

  J. Hydrology 540, 368-378 (2016)

• Separation of argon from environmental samples for Ar-37 and Ar-39 analyses

  R.A. Riedman, R. Purtschert

  Separation and Purification Tech. 170, 217-223 (2016)

• Analysis of Kr-85 and Kr-81 in a few liters of air

  L.-Y. Tu et al.

  Analytical Chemistry 86, 4002-4007 (2014)

• Method for purification of krypton from environmental samples for radiokrypton analysis

  R. Yokochi et al.

  Analytical Chem. 80, 8688–8693 (2008)

Earth sciences

• Groundwater transit time distributions in the Pampean loess of Argentina: Insights from a multi-tracer approach (85Kr, CFCs, SF6, 3H/3He and 39Ar)

  Alejandro Basaldúa, Daniel Martínez, Douglas Kip Solomon,Takuya Matsumoto, Zheng-Tian Lu, Mauricio Quiroz-Londoño, Emiliano Alcaraz, Guo-Min Yang, Wei Jiang

  Groundwater for Sustainable Development 33, 101593 (2026)

• A continuous 6000 year age depth relationship for the remainder of the Weißseespitze summit glacier based on 39Ar and 14C dating

  David Wachs, Azzurra Spagnesi, Pascal Bohleber, Andrea Fischer, Martin Stocker-Waldhuber, Alexander Junkermann, Carl Kindermann, Linus Langenbacher, Niclas Mandaric, Joshua Marks, Florian Meienburg, Theo Jenk, Markus Oberthaler, and Werner Aeschbach

  https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-3681

• Identification of 320 000-year-old blue ice at the surface of the Elephant Moraine region, East Antarctica

  Giyoon Lee, Jinho Ahn, Hyeontae Ju, Ikumi Oyabu, Florian Ritterbusch, Songyi Kim, Jangil Moon, Joohan Lee, Yeongcheol Han, Soon Do Hur, Kenji Kawamura, Zheng-Tian Lu, Wei Jiang, and Guo-Min Yang

  The Cryosphere 19, 3295--3308 (2025)

• Reproducibility of Radiokrypton in Deep Desert Aquifers: Insights from a Decade of Research

  Roi Ram, Eilon M. Adar, Werner Aeschbach, Michael Bishof, Avihu Burg, Wei Jiang, Zheng-Tian Lu, Peter Mueller, Roland Purtschert, Guo-Min Yang, Yoseph Yechieli, Reika Yokochi, Jake C. Zappala, Itay J. Reznik

  ACS Earth and Space Chemistry 9, 2215–2221 (2025)

• A radiometric timescale challenges the chronology of the iconic 1992 Guliya ice core

  Shugui Hou, Theo M. Jenk, Wei Jiang, Wangbin Zhang, Huanting Hu, Xin Feng, Hao Li, Shuang-Ye Wu, Hongxi Pang, Jinhai Yu, Renhui Huang, Zheng-Tian Lu, Guo-Min Yang, Michael Bender, Margit Schwikowski

  Science Advances 11, eadx8837 (2025)

• ⁸¹Kr dating of 1kg Antarctic ice

  F. Ritterbusch, J. S. Wang, X. Feng, S. Shackleton, M. Bender, E. Brook, J. Higgins, Z.-H. Jia, W. Jiang, Z.-T. Lu, J. P. Severinghaus, L.-T. Sun, G.-M. Yang and L. Zhao

  Nature Communications 16, 4394 (2025)

• Deep desert aquifers as an archive for Mid- to Late Pleistocene hydroclimate: An example from the southeastern Mediterranean

  R. Ram et al.

  Science of the Total Environment 951, 175737 (2024)

• Feasibility of ¹²⁹I groundwater dating calibrated by both ⁸¹Kr and ⁴He for the assessment of deep geological repository in Japan

  Tomoko Ohta, Takuma Hasegawa, Wei Jiang, Guo Min Yang, Zheng-Tian Lu, Yasunori Mahara

  Scientific Reports 14, 15688 (2024)

• Identification of 140,000-year-old blue ice in the Grove Mountains, East Antarctica, by krypton-81 dating

  Zhengyi Hu, Wei Jiang, Yuzhen Yan, Yan Huang, Xueyuan Tang, Lin Li, Florian Ritterbusch, Guo-Min Yang, Zheng-Tian Lu, and Guitao Shi

  The Cryosphere 18, 1647-1652 (2024)

• New insights into the flow dynamics of a deep freshwater aquifer in the semi-arid and saline Cuvelai-Etosha Basin, Northern Namibia: Results of a multi-environmental tracer study

  R. Baumle et al.

  Journal of Hydrology 52, 101721 (2024)

• Investigating the enigma of an irregular groundwater age pattern in a confined, presumed “fossil” complex aquifer through mixing cell flow modeling

  B. Atencio, R. Ram, A. Burg, R. Yokochi, Y. Yechieli, R. Purtschert, Z.-T. Lu, W. Jiang, Z. Ronen, E. M. Adar

  Journal of Hydrology 630, 130631 (2024)

• The Antarctic Ice Core Chronology 2023 (AICC2023) chronological framework and associated timescale for the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) Dome C ice core

  Marie Bouchet, Amaëlle Landais, Antoine Grisart, Frédéric Parrenin, Frédéric Prié, Roxanne Jacob, Elise Fourré, Emilie Capron, Dominique Raynaud, Vladimir Ya Lipenkov, Marie-France Loutre, Thomas Extier, Anders Svensson, Etienne Legrain, Patricia Martinerie, Markus Leuenberger, Wei Jiang, Florian Ritterbusch, Zheng-Tian Lu, and Guo-Min Yang

  Climate of the Past 19, 2257-2286 (2023)

• Using ⁸¹Kr and isotopic tracers to characterise old groundwater in the Bangkok metropolitan and vicinity areas

  K. Kamdee et al.

  Isotopes in environmental and health studies (2023)

• Changes in groundwater dynamics and geochemical evolution induced by drainage reorganization: Evidence from ⁸¹Kr and ³⁶Cl dating of geothermal water in the Weihe Basin of China

  J. Li, Z. Pang, Y. Liu, S. Hu, W. Jiang, L. Tian, G. Yang, Y. Jiang, X. Jiao, J. Tian

  Earth and Planetary Science Letters 623, 118452 (2023)

• Reviewing ³⁹Ar and ³⁷Ar underground production in shallow depths with implications for groundwater dating

  S. Musy, R. Purtschert

  Science of the Total Environment 884, 163868 (2023)

• Residence times of groundwater along a flow path in the Great Artesian Basin determined by ⁸¹Kr, ³⁶Cl and ⁴He: Implications for paleo-hydrogeology

  R. Purtschert, A. J. Love, W. Jiang, Z.-T. Lu, S. Fulton, D. Wohling, P. Shand, W. Aeschbach, L. Broder, P. Mueller, and Y. Tosaki

  Science of the Total Environment 859, 159886 (2023)

• Combining ¹⁴C_DOC and ⁸¹Kr with hydrochemical data to identify recharge processes in the South German Molasse Basin

  T. Winter and F. Einsiedl

  J. Hydrology 612, 128020 (2022)

• Multi-tracer groundwater dating in southern Oman using Bayesian modeling

  V. Raedle et al.

  Water Res. Res. 58, e2021WR031776 (2022)

• A Tibetan ice core covering the past 1,300 years radiometrically dated with ³⁹Ar

  F. Ritterbusch et al.

  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 119, e2200835119 (2022)

• Large-scale paleo water-table rise in a deep desert aquifer recorded by dissolved noble gases

  R. Ram et al.

  J. Hydrology 612, 128114 (2022)

• Chronostratigraphy of the Larsen blue-ice area in northern Victoria Land, East Antarctica, and its implications for paleoclimate

  G. Lee et al.

  Cryosphere 16, 2301 (2022)

• Krypton-81 dating constrains timing of deep groundwater flow activation

  J.-H. Kim et al.

  Geophys. Res. Lett. 49, e2021GL097618 (2022)

• ⁸¹Kr reveals one-million-year-old groundwater at the Atlantic coast of Argentina as a record of Mid-Pleistocene climate

  D.E. Martínez et al.

  J. Hydrology 610, 127846 (2022)

• An extension of the TALDICE ice core age scale reaching back to MIS 10.1

  I. Crotti, A. Landais, B. Stenni, L. Bazin, F. Parrenin, M. Frezzotti, F. Ritterbusch, Z. -T. Lu, W. Jiang, G.-M. Yang, E. Fourré, A. Orsi, R. Jacob, B. Minster, F. Prié, G. Dreossi, and C. Barbante

  Quaternary Science Reviews 266, 107078 (2021)

• Reconstruction of the atmospheric ³⁹Ar/Ar history

  J.-Q. Gu, A.-L. Tong, G-M. Yang, S.-M. Hu, W. Jiang, Z.-T. Lu, R. Purtschert, F. Ritterbusch

  Chemical Geology 583, 120480 (2021)

• Inflection points on groundwater age and geochemical profiles along wellbores light up hierarchically nested flow systems

  J. Zhang, X.-S. Wang, L. Yin, W. Wang, A. Love, Z.-T. Lu, W. Jiang, G.-M. Yang, Y. Xie, X. Wang, F. Sun, X. Tang, G. Hou, Z. Pang

  Geophysical Research Letters 48, e2020GL092337 (2021)

• Stellar $s$-process neutron capture cross sections on ^78,80,84,86Kr determined via activation, atom trap trace analysis, and decay counting

  M. Tessler, J. Zappala, S. Cristallo, L. Roberti, M. Paul, S. Halfon, T. Heftrich, W. Jiang, D. Kijel, A. Kreisel, M. Limongi, Z.-T. Lu, P. Mueller, R. Purtschert, R. Reifarth, A. Shor, D. Veltum, D. Vescovi, M. Weigand, and L. Weissman

  Physical Review C 104, 015806 (2021)

• Origin of water masses in Floridan Aquifer System revealed by ⁸¹Kr

  Reika Yokochi et al.

  Earth and Planetary Science Letters 569, 117060 (2021)

• Goundwater residence time estimates obscured by anthropogenic carbonate

  A. M. Seltzer, D. V. Bekaert, P. H. Barry, K. E. Durkin, E. K. Mace et al.

  Science Advances 7, eabf3503 (2021)

• Controls on the ³⁶Cl/Cl input ratio of paleo-groundwater in arid environments: New evidence from ⁸¹Kr/Kr data

  R. Ram et al.

  Science of the Total Environment 762, 144106 (2021)

• Underground production of ⁸¹Kr detected in subsurface fluids

  R. Purtschert et al.

  Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 295, 65-79 (2021)

• Identifying recharge processes into a vast 'fossil' aquifer based on dynamic groundwater ⁸¹Kr age evolution

  R. Ram et al.

  Journal of Hydrology 587, 124946 (2020)

• Atmospheric ⁸¹Kr as an Integrator of Cosmic‐Ray Flux on the Hundred‐Thousand‐Year Time Scale

  J. C. Zappala et al.

  Geophy. Res. Lett. 47, e2019GL086381 (2020)

• Krypton-81 dating of the deep Continental Intercalaire aquifer with implications for chlorine-36 dating

  T. Matsumoto et al.

  Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 535, 116120 (2020)

• Radiokrypton unveils dual moisture sources of a deep desert aquifer

  R. Yokochi et al.

  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 116, 16222 (2019)

• ⁸¹Kr dating at the Guliya ice cap, Tibetan Plateau

  L. Tian et al.

  Geophys. Res. Lett. 46, 6636 (2019)

• Dating glacier ice of the last millennium by quantum technology

  Z. Feng et al.

  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 116, 8781 (2019)

• Recent seawater intrusion into deep aquifer determined by the radioactive noble-gas isotopes ⁸¹Kr and ³⁹Ar

  Y. Yechieli et al.

  Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 507, 21-29 (2019)

• ³⁹Ar dating with small samples provides new key constraints on ocean ventilation

  S. Ebser et al.

  Nat. Comm. 9, 5046 (2018)

• The circulation of the Dead Sea brine in the regional aquifer

  N. Weber, et al.

  Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 493, 242-261 (2018)

• Application of combined ⁸¹Kr and ⁴He chronometers to the dating of old groundwater in a tectonically active region of the North China Plain

  T. Matsumoto et al.

  Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 493, 208-217 (2018)

• Setting a Limit on Anthropogenic Sources of Atmospheric ⁸¹Kr through Atom Trap Trace Analysis

  J. C. Zappala et al.

  Chemical Geology 453, 66-71 (2017)

• Million-year-old groundwater revealed by krypton-81 dating in Guanzhong basin, China

  J. Li et al.

  Science Bulletin 62, 1181-1184 (2017)

• Using ⁸¹Kr and noble gases to characterize and date groundwater and brines in the Baltic Artesian Basin on the one-million-year timescale

  C. Gerber et al.

  Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 205, 187-210 (2017)

• Continental degassing of ⁴He by surficial discharge of deep groundwater

  P.K. Aggarwal et al.

  Nature Geo. 8, 35-39 (2015)

• Radiometric ⁸¹Kr Dating Identifies 120,000 Year Old Ice at Taylor Glacier, Antarctica

  C. Buizert et al.

  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 111, 6876 (2014)

• Groundwater dating with Atom Trap Trace Analysis of ³⁹Ar

  F. Ritterbusch et al.

  Geophys. Res. Lett. 41, 6758-6764 (2014)

• Krypton-81 Transport in Groundwater of the Culebra Dolomite Aquifer near the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, New Mexico

  N. C. Sturchio et al.

  J. Contam. Hydrology 160, 12-20 (2014)

• Noble Gas Radionuclides in Yellowstone Geothermal Gas Emissions: A Reconnaissance

  R. Yokochi et al.

  Chemical Geology 339, 43-51 (2013)

• Cosmogenic, radiogenic, and stable isotopic constraints on groundwater residence time in the Nubian Aquifer, Western Desert of Egypt

  L.J. Patterson et al.

  Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst. 6, Q01005 (2005)

• One million year old groundwater in the Sahara revealed by krypton-81 and chlorine-36

  N. C. Sturchio et al.

  Geophys. Res. Lett. 31, L05503 (2004)