Abstract
Techniques designed to obtain the intensity of the geomagnetic field by thermal demagnetization are subject to error due to differences between the ancient and laboratory cooling rate1–3 and alteration in the physical and chemical properties of the magnetic grains which can lead to a systematic overestimate of the field by as much as 50%. A new technique is proposed here which uses the change in moment with time at a fixed temperature in conjunction with the magnetization acquired on cooling to determine the ancient field and ancient cooling rate. This new technique also appears to be able to detect alteration with greater sensitivity.
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References
Walton, D. Nature 286, 245–247 (1980).
Fox, J. M. W. & Aitken, M. J. Nature 283, 462–463 (1980).
Dodson, M. H. & McLelland Brown, E. J. J. geophys. Res. 85, 2625 (1980).
Walton, D. Nature 277, 643–644 (1979).
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Walton, D. Errors and resolution of thermal techniques for obtaining the geomagnetic intensity. Nature 295, 512–515 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/295512a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/295512a0
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