Alpha sensitivity determination in quartzite using an OSL single aliquot procedure

International audienceIntroduction In the process of dating burnt stone artefacts, the determination of the alpha sensitivity is of paramount importance especially when the radioisotopic contents of the pieces under study are high (typically > 1 ppm), since in such cases the contribution of the alpha dose rate to the total dose rate is not negligible. This parameter is also known to vary from sample to sample, as in the case of burnt flints dated by TL (see for instance Mercier et al., 1995), and its value is needed for each sample. Up to now, the OSL technique has been rarely used for measuring this parameter and in cases where it has been done, it concerned mainly quartz grains extracted from sediments (Rees-Jones, 1995). Here we report alpha sensitivity measurements, using TL and OSL, made on burnt quartzite pebbles, which we wish to date by OSL. It will also be shown that an OSL single aliquot method can be used in order to determine this parameter for each disc, after its equivalent dose (ED) has been measured