Professor LI Xianhua and his team study further characterization of M257 zircon standard.

Reconnaissance SIMS measurement of Li isotope ratio and concentration for several commonly-used zircon U–Pb age standards, including M257, BR266, Ple-sovice, 91500 and TEMORA 2 zircons are analyzed in their research work. Of these, the M257 zircon is demonstrated to be homogeneous in Li isotopic composition. It is also relatively homogeneous in Li concentration.

Therefore, they recommend the new M257 zircon standard as a working reference for SIMS Li isotope and concentration measurements in zircons.

Li et al. Further characterization of M257 zircon standard: A working reference for SIMS analysis of Li isotopes. Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 2011, 26: 352–358 （Download Here）

Fig. Cameca 1280 SIMS in Beijing. (Image by LI)