Monazite is a common accessory phosphate mineral that occurs under a wide range of pressure and temperature conditions in sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks.
Ablation conditions during laser ablation inductively-coupled mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) analyses can affect the resulting ages for monazite U-Th/Pb geochronology.
This journal article discusses the analyses from five monazite reference materials for their U-Th/Pb ages using the LA-ICP-MS technique, with a variety of laser spot diameters and repetition rates applied to find the best operational conditions to achieve accurate age data while maintaining maximum precision.
Access the complimentary journal article titled Assessment of Five Monazite Reference Materials for U-Th/Pb Dating Using Laser-Ablation ICP-MS, published by the international peer-reviewed journal, Geosciences.