Recent Developments in the Techniques of Luminescence Dating

Dating is critical for the development of theories relating to many aspects of geology over Quaternary timescales (0-2 millions). Among different dating methods luminescence has the potential for covering a significant range of Quaternary time. In the last 3 decays, from 1967 to 2003, the use of luminescence signals from naturally occurring minerals has gone through a major transformation, from thermoluminescence (TL) dating of pottery to optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of sediments. The present work reportsaspects of recent advances of luminescence technique from naturally occurring minerals for dating applications. It has provided information about basic principles of luminescence dating and shows very briefly its progress from blue TL to OSL and red luminescence.