Laboratory of Paleomagnetism and Petromagnetism

University of Alberta


A view of the cryogenic magnetometer facility at the Physics Department of the University of Alberta. The facility was funded by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and University of Alberta


 

Academic staff:

 

1. Dr. Vadim Kravchinsky
Professor

http://www.ualberta.ca/~vadim/

 

 

 

2. Dr. Ted Evans
Professor Emeritus

 


Current graduate students (see also http://www.physics.ualberta.ca/Directory/GraduateStudents.aspx ):

 

 

 

13.

Ekaterina Kozmina

(co-supervised with S. Johnston)

Plate tectonics of Eastern Asia in Paleozoic

12.

Benjamin Lysak M.Sc. 2017–2019
Paleomagnetism of South China in Early Cambrian

11.

Ryan Borowiecki Ph.D. 2016–2020
(co-supervised with M. van der Baan)
Signal processing in the paleoenvironmental studies


Former graduate students

 

 

 

After graduation got job at

10.

Taslima Anwar Ph.D. 2012 – 2016
Cyclostratigraphy, Paleoclimate and Milankovitch periods. Absolute paleointensity of Permo-Triassic and Late Devonian

Teaching Assistant (University of Alberta)

9.

Lei Wu
(co-supervised with D. Potter)
Ph.D. 2012 – 2016

Paleomagnetism and its tectonic applications

Researcher / Post–Doctoral Fellow (Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, CAS)

8.

Chen Jiasheng (co-supervised with Xiuming Liu from Lanzhou University)
Ph.D.
Mechanism of Cenozoic climate change
2011 – 2013

Fujian Normal University (China)

7.

Dunia Blanco
Ph.D.
Paleomagnetic studies of volcanic rocks in Siberia and sedimentary rocks in Southern Alberta: From long-term geomagnetic field variations to age determinations.
2008 – 2013

Shell Canada (Calgary)

6.

Karol Rohraff (co-supervised with M. Sacchi)
M.Sc.
Time series processing: stratigraphic and paleoclimatic implications
2009 – 2011

Shell Canada (Calgary)

5.

Rui Zhang
Ph.D.
Paleomagnetic and petromagnetic studies of Chinese Cenozoic sediments: Paleoclimatic, tectonic, and evolutionary implications
2006 – 2011

Professorship (tenure-track) at the Northwest University (Xi’an, China)

4.

Jeff Samson
M.Sc.
A Reappraisal of the Paleomagnetism of the Lewisian Foreland, NW Scotland: the occurrence of primary magnetizations and their implication for a Baltica-Lewisian fit at 2.0 Ga
2007 – 2009

Geology and geophysics consulting (Vancouver, Calgary)

3.

Shawn D. Walker
M.Sc.
Holocene Loess-Soil Deposits in Siberia: Geophysical and Geological Parameters as Regional and Global Climate Indicators
2004 – 2007

Aurora Enterprise (North Canada and US)

2.

Jason Zhigang Han (co-supervised with D. Schmitt)
M.Sc.
Correlations between seismic and magnetic susceptibility anisotropy in serpentinized peridotite
2002 – 2005

Shell Canada (Calgary)

1.

Mikhail A. Krainov
(co-supervised with M.I. Kuzmin)
Ph.D. in Russian Academy of Sciences, Siberian Branch
Magnetostratigraphy and rock-magnetism of the Lake Baikal deep drilling sediments: paleoclimatic implications
2000 – 2005

Russian Academy of Sciences (permanent researcher at the Vinogradov Institute of Geochemistry)


Visitors and Researchers

Ms. Jie Qin (2019) (The Northwest University, Xian), visiting PhD student.

Ms. Yixuan Zhou (2018) (Beijing Normal University). Mitacs Globalink Research Internship fellow, summer research assistant.

Dr. Rui Zhang (2015 – 2016) (Northwest University, Xi’an, China). Sabbatical. http://geology.nwu.edu.cn/en/

Ms. Anna Arora (2015) (University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, India). Mitacs Globalink Research Internship fellow, summer research assistant.

Dr. Vladimir E. Pavlov (2015, August) (Institute of Physics of the Earth, Moscow). Visiting researcher. His personal site: http://paleomag.ifz.ru/personal/pavlov/index.html.

Dr. Guillaume St-Onge (2015) (Université du Québec à Rimouski). Invited speaker. http://www.uqar.ca/oceanographie/professeurs/st-onge-guillaume/

Dr. Lirong Yang (2014) (Northwest University, Xi’an, China). Sabbatical. http://geology.nwu.edu.cn/en/

Mr. Yong Xu (2014, June) (Xi'an Center of Geological Survey, China). Research visit. http://en.xian.cgs.gov.cn/

Dr. Xin Cheng (2014) (Northwest University, Xi’an, China). Sabbatical. http://geology.nwu.edu.cn/en/

Dr. Cor Langereis (2012, September) (Utrecht University, the Netherlands). Invited speaker, http://www.geo.uu.nl/~forth/

Dr. Vladimir E. Pavlov (2012, August) (Institute of Physics of the Earth, Moscow). Visiting researcher. His personal site: http://paleomag.ifz.ru/personal/pavlov/index.html.

Dr. Leping Yue and Dr. Lirong Yang (2010, September) (Northwest University, Xi’an, China). Invited researchers.

Dr. Vincent Courtillot (2009, October) (Institute de Physique du Globe de Paris). Invited speaker. His personal site: http://www.ipgp.fr/~courtil/

Dr. René W. Barendregt (2008, October) (University of Lethbridge). Invited speaker. His personal site: http://people.uleth.ca/~barendregt/

Dr. Nikolai Berdunov (2008, September) (University of Nottingham, UK). Invited speaker. 

Dr. Vladimir E. Pavlov (2008, April - June) (Institute of Physics of the Earth, Moscow). Visiting researcher. His personal site: http://paleomag.ifz.ru/personal/pavlov/index.html.

Dr. Mikhail I. Kuzmin (2007, November) (Institute of Geochemistry, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences). Visiting researcher. http://www.igc.irk.ru/

Dr. Jean-Pierre Valet (2006, November) (Institute de Physique du Globe). Invited speaker. His personal site: http://www.ipgp.jussieu.fr/~valet/ 

Dr. Konstantin G. Dlussky (2002-2005). Dr. Dlussky held a post-doctoral position with supervising of Professor Nat W. Rutter (Earth & Atmospheric Science Department, U of A) and Professor Ted Evans (Physics Department, U of A). Now at Environmental Consulting Company (Edmonton, Canada).

Dr. Valentina Zykina (Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk) was a visiting fellow during 2004.

Dr. Juan Carlos Bigdegain (Argentina). Visiting fellow during 2002. He was working with Dr. Evans on different aspects of Argentinean loess-sol sequences.

Dr. Jean-Pascal Cogné (2003, November) (Institute de Physique du Globe, France). Invited speaker. His personal site: http://www.ipgp.jussieu.fr/~cogne/


Former Undergraduate Research Projects

1. Sean Bettac (University of Alberta), 2015. Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility in Alaska loess sections.

2. Anna Arora (University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, India. Mitacs Globalink Research Internship fellow), 2015. Holocene climate change in Rocky Mountain eolian records.

3. Matthew Cannon (University of Alberta), 2005. He worked on paleomagnetism of Canadian kimberlites (diamond bearing rocks). More about Matthew and the project. Now at Shell Canada.

4. Rebecca Hansen (University of Alberta), 2004. She won a prestigious NSERC summer research award. She works on magnetic properties of Siberian loess-soil sequences. More about Rebecca and the project.


Equipment

*          Permalloy shielded room was built to make sensitive to geomagnetic noise experiments. Size: 2.5m x 2.5m x 2.5m

 

*          2-G cryogenic magnetometer (horizontal option with demagnetization, ARM and IRM coils). Funded by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and the University of Alberta.

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Geophysics technicians Dave Schuler and Len Tober during the final stage of the cryogenic magnetometer installation in December 2006.

*          Spinner magnetometers. The laboratory maintains two spin magnetometers: Schonstedt SSM-1A Fluxgate Spinner Magnetometer measures remanence > 1 mA/m (acquired in 1971) and Molspin flux gate slow spin magnetometer (acquired in 1972).
The magnetometers are used for high-sensitivity work for both low and strongly magnetized materials. The flux-gate instruments, equipped with digital data logging and reduction, have a practical sensitivity of 5 x 10-7 emu. Typical measurement time per sample is 4 minutes.

*          Bartington susceptibility meter. The MS2 Magnetic Susceptibility System with sensors and software for field and laboratory use including anisotropy measurements.
Susceptibility/Temperature System. A system for the measurement of magnetic susceptibility over the temperature range -200°C to +900°C.
Sensors:
MS2B - Laboratory sensor for dual frequency measurements on 25.4mm cores or10ml samples.
MS2C - Range of core logging sensors with different diameters for measurements on sediment cores with no metal cladding.
MS2F - Probe with 15mm diameter for high resolution surface measurements.
The data are recorded and reduced automatically by an online computer. Anisotropy of susceptibility can be measured with extremely sensitive apparatus made at the U of Alberta.

 

*          The portable KT-5 Magnetic Susceptibility Meter for field measurements.
This portable, hand-held unit can be used in the field to analyze and classify rock types or core samples. It measures the volume magnetite content of rocks to extremely low levels and thus can identify very minute quantities of magnetite, titanomagnetite, ilmenite and pyrrhotite.

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*          Demagnetization equipment: Alternating field and thermal methods. The AF unit operates at 400 Hz, producing a maximum magnetic field strength of 1500 Gauss (0.15 Tesla). The sample is held in a reciprocating tumbler to reduce spurious magnetization induced by AF treatment. Thermal demagnetization is carried out in a shielded permalloy room (internal magnetic field less than 5 x 10-5 Gauss) which holds up to 40 standard specimens per4-hour heating/cooling cycle. Heating is conducted in air atmosphere. We also have the Thermal Demagnetizer ASC Model TD48-SC (see details at http://www.ascscientific.com/td48.html).

Shawn Walker (graduated in 2007) is using the AF Degausser.

*          Electromagnet Isothermal Remnant Magnetization is imparted to the specimen at room temperature with an electromagnet, capable of producing DC fields up to 10000 Gauss (1 Tesla). Magnetic remanence is then measured with one of the magnetometers. Saturation remnant magnetization and coercivity of remanence are measured with this system.

 

*          Rock drills and other field equipment. The laboratory maintains a full complement of portable rock drills, sample orienting equipment, and sediment sampling tools.

 

*          Rock drills and other field equipment. The laboratory maintains a full complement of portable rock drills, sample orienting equipment, and sediment sampling tools.

 

*          In collaboration with Dr. D. Potter we installed and now testing the Magnetic Measurements Variable Field Translation Balance (MMVFTB). MMVFTB is an instrument for measuring isothermal magnetizations in variable fields (e.g., hysteresis loops) as well as the temperature dependence of the associated magnetic parameters. It is specifically designed to measure the weak magnetizations commonly encountered in rock magnetism. We can determine grain size and composition. Ferromagnetic, paramagnetic and diamagnetic components could be evaluated.

 

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Jason Han (graduated in 2005) studying serpentinites using optical microscope. 


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Last modification: April 2, 2021