Scientific Colloquium
January 31, 2014
WILLIAM
MCDONOUGH
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
"Imaging the Earth's
Interior with Geo-neutrinos"
Radioactive decay of U and Th
gives off ghost-like, neutrino particles that can be detected by
1000 ton detectors built a mile underground, where they are
shielded from the cosmic rays that rain down on the Earth.
Collaborations between physicists and geologists are detecting
these "geo-neutrinos". Future underwater detectors, deployed at
different points on the ocean floor, will create a neutrino
tomographic image of mantle structures sited at the base of the
mantle above the core.
About the speaker:
Dr. William McDonough is Professor, Director of the Plasma Lab,
and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Geology, and
Affiliate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the
University of Maryland, His recognitions include: Fellow, American
Geophysical Union; Fellow, Geochemical Society and the European
Association for Geochemistry; Distinguished Faculty Award, CMPS,
Board of Visitors, University of Maryland Fellow, Mineralogical
Society of America; Fellow, Geological Society of America; Fellow,
Alexander von Humboldt Society.
140 published papers with 22,000 citations; 22 papers with >100
citations, 12 with >200 citations
Editor of 2 books: Volume Editor, Analytical Geochemistry /
Inorganic Instrument Analysis, in Treatise on Geochemistry (eds.
H.D. Holland and K.K. Turekian), Elsevier-Pergamon (2013); Co-
editor, Composition, Deep Structure and Evolution of Continents
(1999) Elsevier, 300 pp
Journal Editor – Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research
Understanding the composition, structure and evolution of the
Earth and the other terrestrial planets are dominant themes of my
research. The differentiation of the Earth has created 3 separate
and distinct reservoirs (i.e., the core, the mantle-crust system,
and the atmosphere-hydrosphere system). These reservoirs are in
turn themselves internally differentiated and powered in part by
radioactively produced energy. Chemical and isotopic studies of
terrestrial and meteoritic samples provide insights into the
timing and details of the various differentiation processes
occurring in these planetary domains.
My expertise is in analytical instrumentation and neutrino
geoscience. Using laser ablation systems and plasma mass
spectrometers for the chemical and isotopic analyses of samples I
work with geologists, biologist, chemists, physicists and members
of the US intelligence community. I am developing and improving
upon methods of modeling and detecting the Earth’s geoneutrino
(electron antineutrino) flux and anti-neutrino detection for
nuclear monitoring. With my students we provide chemical and
isotopic data that constrain geological processes and data for
forensics, nuclear chemistry and archaeology.