The formation of the solar system

The solar system started to form about 4.56 Gyr ago and despite the long intervening time span, there still exist several clues about its formation. The three major sources for this information are meteorites, the present solar system structure and the planet-forming systems around young stars. In this introduction we give an overview of the current understanding of the solar system formation from all these different research fields. This includes the question of the lifetime of the solar protoplanetary disc, the different stages of planet formation, their duration, and their relative importance. We consider whether meteorite evidence and observations of protoplanetary discs point in the same direction. This will tell us whether our solar system had a typical formation history or an exceptional one. There are also many indications that the solar system formed as part of a star cluster. Here we examine the types of cluster the Sun could have formed in, especially whether its stellar density was at any stage high enough to influence the properties of today's solar system. The likelihood of identifying siblings of the Sun is discussed. Finally, the possible dynamical evolution of the solar system since its formation and its future are considered.Comment: 36 pages, 7 figures, invited review in Physica Script

Abundances of the elements in the solar system

A review of the abundances and condensation temperatures of the elements and their nuclides in the solar nebula and in chondritic meteorites. Abundances of the elements in some neighboring stars are also discussed.Comment: 42 pages, 11 tables, 8 figures, chapter, In Landolt- B\"ornstein, New Series, Vol. VI/4B, Chap. 4.4, J.E. Tr\"umper (ed.), Berlin, Heidelberg, New York: Springer-Verlag, p. 560-63

Roadmap for Optical Tweezers 2023

Optical tweezers are tools made of light that enable contactless pushing, trapping, and manipulation of objects ranging from atoms to space light sails. Since the pioneering work by Arthur Ashkin in the 1970s, optical tweezers have evolved into sophisticated instruments and have been employed in a broad range of applications in life sciences, physics, and engineering. These include accurate force and torque measurement at the femtonewton level, microrheology of complex fluids, single micro- and nanoparticle spectroscopy, single-cell analysis, and statistical-physics experiments. This roadmap provides insights into current investigations involving optical forces and optical tweezers from their theoretical foundations to designs and setups. It also offers perspectives for applications to a wide range of research fields, from biophysics to space exploration

The behaviour of the extended HFSE group (Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, W, Mo) during the petrogenesis of mafic K-rich lavas: The Eastern Mediterranean case

In arc lavas, elements of the extended high field strength element group (HFSE; Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, W, and Mo) are valuable tracers to unravel magma source processes. These elements can also help to identify residual mineral assemblages in subducting slabs and in the mantle. Most high-precision studies on HFSE behaviour to date only focused on intra-oceanic arc suites and data for mafic lavas of the K-rich series (medium-K, high-K and shoshonitic) are scarce. Arguably, K-rich series are the most incompatible element-rich end-members of subduction zone magmatism, and they often record sediment recycling into the mantle. Understanding HFSE fractionation in K-rich lavas can therefore provide important insight into the global HFSE budget. Here we present a comprehensive extended HFSE dataset obtained by isotope dilution on well-characterised K-rich lavas from the Eastern Mediterranean, also including subducting sediment samples drilled during DSDP Leg 13 and ODP Leg 160 South and West of Crete. The volcanic samples include mafic calc-alkaline lavas from the active Aegean Island arc (Santorini) and post-collisional Tertiary lavas from SE Bulgaria. The Santorini lavas record a hydrous sediment melt-mediated source overprint of a depleted mantle source by components from the subducting African plate. The Bulgarian lavas tap lithospheric mantle sources that were overprinted by fluid- and melt-like subduction components during Eocene subduction of the African Plate. The sediments in this study comprise silts/sands, marl oozes, limestones and clay-rich debris flows and approximate the bulk sediment subducted beneath the Hellenic arc. The marked enrichment of all HFSE in the lavas is controlled by the composition of the subducted sediments as shown by low Lu-176/Hf-177 (0.008630-0.02433) and Zr/Nb (11.3-29.4), combined with variable epsilon Hf (-3 to +11) and elevated W contents (up to 2.45 ppm) in the lavas. Nevertheless, the lavas display unfractionated ratios of Nb/Ta and Zr/Hf of 12.3-16.5 and 34.4-38.6, respectively, with respect to MORB. This feature may be explained by the Nb/Ta in the sediments that are on average higher (15.2 +/- 2) compared to typical upper crustal estimates (12.5 +/- 1.8), indicating a strong regional control on the HFSE ratios in Eastern Mediterranean sediments. The lavas exhibit low Ta/W(<1.33), but do not show elevated W/Th, as expected for island-arcs entirely dominated by subduction zone fluids. Ratios of Mo/W in all lavas are low (<1.79), which, according to experimental evidence, can be explained by low fluid salinities at moderately oxidised conditions. Collectively, our data therefore confirm the mobility of W in subduction zones, but the selective mobility of W relative to the similar incompatible Th and Mo depends on the proportion of melt-like components, the composition of the material being subducted and ambient redox conditions in the subducted material. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

The role of mantle-hybridization and crustal contamination in the petrogenesis of lithospheric mantle-derived alkaline rocks: constraints from Os and Hf isotopes

The Rhon area as part of the Central European Volcanic Province (CEVP) hosts an unusual suite of Tertiary 24-Ma old hornblende-bearing alkaline basalts that provide insights into melting and fractionation processes within the lithospheric mantle. These chemically primitive to slightly evolved and isotopically (Sr, Nd, Pb) depleted basalts have slightly lower Hf isotopic compositions than respective other CEVP basalts and Os isotope compositions more radiogenic than commonly observed for continental intraplate alkaline basalts. These highly radiogenic initial Os-187/Os-188 ratios (0.268-0.892) together with their respective Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic compositions are unlikely to result from crustal contamination alone, although a lack of Os data for lower crustal rocks from the area and limited data for CEVP basalts or mantle xenoliths preclude a detailed evaluation. Similarly, melting of the same metasomatized subcontinental lithospheric mantle as inferred for other CEVP basalts alone is also unlikely, based on only moderately radiogenic Os isotope compositions obtained for upper mantle xenoliths from elsewhere in the province. Another explanation for the combined Nd, Sr and Os isotope data is that the lavas gained their highly radiogenic Os isotope composition through a mantle hybridization, metasomatism process. This model involves a mafic lithospheric component, such as an intrusion of a sublithospheric primary alkaline melt or a melt derived from subducted oceanic material, sometime in the past into the lithospheric mantle where it metasomatized the ambient mantle. Later at 24 Ma, thermal perturbations during rifting forced the isotopically evolved parts of the mantle together with the peridotitic ambient mantle to melt. This yielded a package of melts with highly correlated Re/Os ratios and radiogenic Os isotope compositions. Subsequent movement through the crust may have further altered the Os isotope composition although this effect is probably minor for the majority of the samples based on radiogenic Nd and unradiogenic Sr isotope composition of the lavas. If the radiogenic Os isotope composition can be explained by a mantle-hybridization and metasomatism model, the isotopic compositions of the hornblende basalts can be satisfied by ca. 5-25% addition of the mafic lithospheric component to an asthenospheric alkaline magma. Although a lack of isotope data for all required endmembers make this model somewhat speculative, the results show that the Re-Os isotope system in continental basalts is able to distinguish between crustal contamination and derivation of continental alkaline lavas from isotopically evolved peridotitic lithosphere that was contaminated by mafic material in the past and later remelted during rifting. The Hf isotopic compositions are slightly less radiogenic than in other alkaline basalts from the province and indicate the derivation of the lavas from low Lu-Hf parts of the lithospheric mantle. The new Os and Hf isotope data constrain a new light of the nature of such metasomatizing agents, at least for these particular rocks, which represent within the particular volcanic complex the first product of the volcanism

Effects of variable slab components and tectonics on magma composition in the intra-oceanic Kermadec Arc-Backarc system

The Kermadec Arc-Backarc system (25-39 degrees S) in the southwest Pacific is an important natural laboratory to examine the controls on arc magma compositions, because the physical parameters that are thought to influence subduction-related magmatism (the thickness and composition of the upper plate, mantle depletion and partial melting, and the slab components) change along the arc. Furthermore, the presence of back-arc and rear-arc volcanism allow insight into how mantle composition varies with distance to the trench. We present new major and trace element and Pb-Sr-Nd-Hf isotope data for 101 lava samples from 10 volcanoes along the Kermadec Arc, and combine these with published data for volcanic arc front, rear-arc, and back-arc lavas. The Kermadec Arc-Backarc magmas experienced similar fractional crystallization paths, and those erupted onto oceanic crust are not affected by crustal assimilation. The degree of partial melting varies along and across the arc, partly due to variations in the thickness of the lithosphere of the upper plate, but also due to variations in slab fluid input. We distinguish four different arc segments varying from 100 to 600 km wide, which erupt lavas with distinct compositions due to differences in along-arc slab input. All Kermadec arc and rear-arc lavas were derived from mantle sources to which the sediment melt and a fluid from subducted Pacific oceanic crust or the Hikurangi Seamounts had been added. Increasing sediment melt input into the mantle wedge southwards is reflected in increasing 87Sr/86Sr and Th/Nd, and decreasing 143Nd/144Nd southwards towards New Zealand. Some volcanoes from the central Kermadec Arc show with unusually radiogenic Pb isotope compositions that are probably derived from subducted alkaline rocks from seamounts built on the Hikurangi Plateau. The geochemical segmentation of the Kermadec Arc indicates that slab-derived components can be relatively homogeneous on large scales, but small features like seamounts cause complex additions to the slab component

The chemical composition of carbonaceous chondrites: Implications for volatile element depletion, complementarity and alteration

In Earth and planetary sciences, the chemical composition of chondritic meteorites provides an essential reference to constrain the composition and differentiation history of planetary reservoirs. Yet, for many trace elements, and in particular for volatile trace elements the composition of chondrites is not well constrained. Here we present new compositional data for carbonaceous chondrites with an emphasis on the origin of the volatile element depletion pattern. Our database includes 25 carbonaceous chondrites from 6 different groups (CI, CM, CR, CV, CO, CK), two ungrouped carbonaceous chondrites and Murchison powder samples heated up to 1000 degrees C in O-2 or Ar gas streams, respectively. A total of 51 major and trace elements were analyzed by sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS), using chondrite-matched calibration solutions. Our results confirm that parent body alteration and terrestrial weathering only have minor effects on the bulk chondrite compositions. Thermal metamorphism can lead to the loss of some volatile elements, as best observed in the heating experiments and two thermally overprinted chondrites Y-980115 (CI) and EET 96026 (CV4/5 or CK4/5). The effects of aqueous alteration and terrestrial weathering on the Antarctic samples are difficult to discriminate. Both processes may redistribute fluid mobile elements such as K, Na, Rb, U and the light rare earth elements (LREE) within the meteorite. In hot desert finds, the typical weathering effects are enrichments of Sr, Ba and U and a depletion of S. In general, moderately volatile elements with 50% condensation temperatures (T-c) ranging from 1250 K to 800 K show an increasing depletion, whereas 11 moderately volatile elements with 50% T-c between 800 K and 500 K are unfractionated from each other in most samples. Their extent of depletion is characteristic for the different chondrite groups. Because of this welldefined hockey stick pattern, we propose to divide the moderately volatile elements into two subgroups, the 'slope volatile elements' and the unfractionated 'plateau volatile elements' with lower T-c . Notably, the abundances of plateau volatile elements exhibit a co-variation with the matrix abundances of the respective host meteorites. Carbonaceous chondrite matrices are likely mixes of: (i) CI-like material and (ii) chondrule-related matrix. Chondrule-related matrix is expected to be depleted in volatile elements relative to CI and likely formed contemporaneously with chondrules, leading to chondrule-matrix complementarity. The addition of CI-like material only changed the absolute elemental concentrations of bulk matrix and bulk chondrite, while refractory and main component element ratios such as Mg/Si remain unaffected. Such a model can also account for the co-existence of low temperature CI-like material and high temperature chondrule and chondrule-related matrix. However, elevated volatile element abundances observed in chondrules still provide a challenge for the model as proposed here. (C) 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd

Petrogenesis of plagiogranites from the Troodos Ophiolite Complex, Cyprus

Small volumes of felsic melt, commonly known as oceanic plagiogranites, appear as melt pockets or dikes within the gabbroic section and the sheeted dikes root zone of the oceanic crust. Plagiogranites from the Troodos Ophiolite Complex on Cyprus are among the best exposures of felsic rocks that are embedded in a complete section of obducted oceanic lithosphere. Nevertheless, their exact petrogenesis is still a matter of debate, largely due to limited high-quality trace element and radiogenic isotope data. Previously proposed models for Troodos plagiogranites have included both low-pressure dehydration melting and fractional crystallisation at deeper levels of the oceanic crust. To evaluate both models, oceanic plagiogranites from the Troodos Ophiolite Complex were analysed in this study for their major and trace elements, and for the first time also for Hf-Nd-Sr isotope compositions. The trace element measurements also include for the first time high-precision measurements of high-field-strength element (HFSE) abundances that now permit to better unravel the petrogenesis of the Troodos plagiogranites and their possible mantle sources. In general, the Troodos plagiogranites exhibit a narrow range of Nb/Ta and Zr/Hf that overlap the compositions of mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB). In line with earlier studies, three compositional groups can be identified: two groups formed by either fractional crystallisation or combined fractional crystallisation and wall rock assimilation, and one group derived from partial melting of slightly altered oceanic crust. The majority of the Troodos plagiogranites (Main Group) are the product of extensive fractional crystallisation of ambient arc-tholeiitic mafic melts. A second group of plagiogranites (Spilia Group) is generated by fractional crystallisation of boninitic precursor melts and the assimilation of arc-tholeiitic crustal material. Variable HFSE concentrations and diagnostic Hf-Nd isotope signatures that are unique to both suites allow discriminating between the two parental melts and fractionation processes. A small group of plagiogranites (Zoopigi Group) is interpreted to derive from partial melting in the conductive layer of active magma chamber lenses (AML). Elevated Nb/Ta, Zr/Hf, and light rare-earth element (LREE) enrichments in these rocks are in support of this model. Collectively, our data suggest that low-pressure fractional crystallisation (also in combination with assimilation of wall rocks) might be the predominant process controlling the formation of felsic rocks on Cyprus, whereas dehydration melting appears to be less important. If compared to Archean tonalitic-trondhjemitic-granodioritic suites (TTGs), compositions of plagiogranites from Cyprus mirror shallow-level processes in thin oceanic crust, which is illustrated by their narrow, MORB-like range of HFSE ratios and their distinct enrichment in heavy rare-earth elements (HREE) that distinguishes them from the Archean TTGs