-
Period: to
Principle of Half-Life Discovered
Ernest Rutherford discovers the principle of half life, applying it to finding the age of rocks. He does this by observing the amount of time it takes for radium to decay to lead-206 in the rocks. -
Rutherford receives the Nobel Prize
Rutherford receives the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his research in half life and radioactive elements. -
Period: to
Franz Curie suggests the existence of Carbon 14
-
Carbon 14 is synthesized
Carbon 14 is synthesized at Berkeley by Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben -
Period: to
Willard Libby begins research on Carbon-14
Willard Libby hypothesizes that it may be possible to use Carbon 14 for dating, and he begins research at the University of Chicago -
Willard Libby publishes a paper on Carbon-14
Libby publishes a paper proposing that carbon in living matter includes Carbon 14 -
Libby receives the Nobel Prize
Libby receives the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his work with radiocarbon dating