Radiocarbon measurements with mid-infrared SCAR spectroscopy
Since its first invention and demonstration [1], saturated-absorption cavity ring-down spectroscopy (SCAR) of CO2 gas samples at 4.5 µm wavelength has been approaching accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) precision in radiocarbon measurements. The first intercomparison between SCAR and AMS measurements was performed with modern (fermentation of brown cane sugar) and fossil (high-purity industrial gas cylinder) carbon dioxide samples [2].