Fission track laboratory
  
Fission track laboratory images
The Fission track laboratory in the Geology Department was installed
in Autumn 2007. It was funded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and
the Petroleum Infrastructure Programme (PIP) of the Petroleum Affairs
Division (PAD).
The system is based on a state-of-the-art Carl Zeiss AxioImager Z1m
microscope, using an Autoscan AS3000i/f stage system in conjunction
with Sony linear sensors for improved positioning accuracy, and an Olympus/SIS
CView 3 high-resolution digital colour camera. The system is controlled
by Autoscan Trakscan software, which now also incorporates FastTracks,
an automated track counting module. FastTracks consists of an image
acquisition module that automatically acquires a series of reflected
and transmitted light images at each area selected for counting. These
are archived and a separate automated counting and review module is
then used offline to analyse the data. It also incoprorates a review
function which allows the operator to review (and if necessary, modify)
the results achieved by the program. The automated counting system has
so far been applied successfully to fission track dating of apatite
and monazite (e.g. Gleadow
et al., 2007  ).
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