D. Elmore, B.R. Fulton, M.R. Clover, J.R. Marsden, H.E. Gove, University of Rochester

L.R. Kilius, R.P. Beukens, A.E. Litherland, University of Toronto

Nature 277 (1979) 22-25

A new atom identification and detection technique for ultrasensitive mass spectrometry has been applied to the radionuclide 36Cl. Measurements of the 36Cl/Cl ratio in AgCl precipitated from six different natural water samples fell in range 1.2 x 10^-13 -2 x 10^-12 with a background level below 3 x 10^-15. For each sample less than 70 mg of AgCl were used, requiring 1-51 of water.