Radiocarbon dating and AMS
In our radiocarbon laboratory we determine the age of materials with high precision using accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). We are a user facility and also offer complete service including sample preparation and determination of the stable isotopes ¹³C and ¹⁵N.
The Tandem Laboratory dates thousands of samples each year for a diverse range of applications, for example archaeology, geology, glaciology, biology, and medicine. Our services are available to both the public and private sector as well as private individuals.
Why choose us to date your samples?
- Long-standing experience and team with broad competence,
- Dedicated MICADAS accelerator specially designed for ultrasensitive mass spectrometry of carbon isotopes and efficient handling of different sample types,
- Use of advanced sample preparation methods,
- Constant development of our equipment and routines to match advancement in user demands.
If you are submitting samples for dating for the first time, please have a look at our FAQ. Do not hesitate to contact us directly, if you have any questions.
Below you can learn more about research areas to which the Tandem Laboratory has been contributing substantially as well as further possibilities for materials analysis.
Radiocarbon dating using AMS in geology and archaeology
In addition to the stable carbon isotopes 12C and 13C, the atmosphere contains the radioactive isotope 14C, with a half-life of 5730 years. This isotope is constantly replenished by cosmic radiation. All living beings take up carbon from the atmosphere through their metabolism. Since carbon is constantly replaced, they retain a constant level of 14C. When they die, the 14C decays while the amount of stable isotopes remain constant. By measuring the ratio of remaining 14C to 12C a sample can be dated.
The number of carbon-14 isotopes halves every 5730 years.
As this ratio is typically of the order of 10-14 for archaeological samples, highly elaborate sample preparation procedures and precise measurements have to be performed to unambiguously determine the age of a sample. Our laboratory has a long-standing expertise in both development and application of these procedures and performs state-of-the-art radiocarbon dating with several thousands of measurements annually for miscellaneous applications.
Radiocarbon dating using AMS in biomedicine
A variety of complementary techniques have been used in connection with accelerator mass spectrometry in the field of biomedicine, facilitating extreme measurement capabilities. Subsequently, several new interdisciplinary research areas, with unique analytical capabilities, have emerged.
Sensitivity
In pharmacology, we have demonstrated detection of 14C-marked drugs in human blood in the zeptomole level range (1 zeptomole = 10-21 mole).
Small samples
Conventional radiocarbon dating requires milligrams of carbon. We routinely measure samples of only a few micrograms.
Microdosing (clinical phase 0 trials)
New drug candidates can be administered directly to human subjects at an early stage to extract important pharmacokinetic data. This provides information on how the drug is absorbed, distributed, metabolized and excreted.
Regenerative medicine
In a long-term collaborative work with Karolinska Institutet we have developed a method to study specific cell types and extract neurogenesis rates for various parts of the human brain, previously not possible.
Forensic Sciences
In collaboration with the law authorities, date of birth and death can be determined for samples such as teeth from deceased individuals.
Other analysis methods available in our lab
Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE)
PIXE employs the ability of energetic particles to excite a sample’s electronic system and thus induce the emission of characteristic X-rays from the material. This method for measuring a sample’s chemical composition is especially sensitive and non-destructive. In our lab, we can combine PIXE with a so-called microbeam – for measuring and mapping chemical composition with a high lateral resolution. Find more information about our microbeam here.
X-ray fluorescence (XRF)
An easy to handle in-air tool for quick analysis of chemical composition. Our XRF set-up can be employed for analysis of a wide variety of samples, both organic and inorganic materials in solid or liquid form. More information can be found here.
Please contact us directly at tandemlaboratoriet@physics.uu.se if you are interested in using any of these analytical methods.
Publications
Here we highlight recent selected publications that include accelerator mass spectrometry data from our lab.
Triple-isotopic analyses pinpoint microbial methane release from subsea permafrost in the inner Laptev Sea
M. Brussee et al. Communications Earth & Environment 7, 211. 2026.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03222-7
Inscribed sandstone fragments of Hole, Norway: radiocarbon dates provide insight into rune-stone traditions
S. Solheim et al. Antiquity 99 (404), 422–439. 2025
https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2024.225
Hydroclimate intensification likely aided glacier survival on Svalbard in the Early Holocene
A. G. Auer et al. Communications Earth & Environment 6, 100. 2025.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02064-z
Longer Lifetime of BC from Fossil Fuel Combustion than from Biomass Burning: Δ14C Evidence
C. Li et al. Environmental Science & Technology 59 (9), 4571–4577. 2025.
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c10040
Coastal lake sediments from Arctic Svalbard suggest colder summers are stormier
Z. Stachowska, W. G. M. van der Bilt and M. C. Strzelecki. Nature Communications 15, 9688. 2024.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53875-1
Late Neolithic collective burial reveals admixture dynamics during the third millennium BCE and the shaping of the European genome
O. Parasayan et al. Science Advances 10, eadl2468. 2024.
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adl2468
Diploid hepatocytes drive physiological liver renewal in adult humans
P. Heinke et al. Cell Systems 13 (6), 499–507. 2022.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cels.2022.05.001
Evidence for postnatal neurogenesis in the human amygdala
S. Roeder et al. Communications Biology 5, 366. 2022.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-03299-8
Hunter-gatherer metallurgy in the Early Iron Age of Northern Fennoscandia
C. Bennerhag et al. Antiquity 95 (384), 1511–1526. 2021.
https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2020.248
Research infrastructures within archaeology we contribute to
Swedigarch – Swedish National Infrastructure for Digital Archaeology
Contact
- For questions concerning radiocarbon dating, please email:
- radiocarbon@physics.uu.se
- For general questions about the laboratory, please email:
- tandemlaboratoriet@physics.uu.se