Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research (PCIGR)

What the facility does

Research, services and training in elemental and isotopic geochemistry.

Areas of expertise

The Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research (PCIGR) is a world-class integrated analytical facility that fosters leading-edge research in the natural sciences. Primarily focused on the Earth sciences when established in 2002, the facility’s capacity has since significantly evolved to include applications in fields ranging from archaeology to zoology, quite literally from ‘A’ to ‘Z’. The unique synergy of our state-of-the-art instruments, sample preparation clean laboratories, resident research team, and highly qualified support staff makes PCIGR one of the world’s best analytical facilities. Our analytical versatility is unsurpassed, allowing users to attain high-precision element and isotope measurements throughout the periodic table, down to the micron-scale and nanogram level in a wide variety of substrates.

Our dedicated research team and support staff design customized analytical solutions to meet specific needs and challenges (e.g. small sample sizes, low-level analyses) while adhering to the highest standards of quality assurance and quality control protocols. PCIGR provides high-quality analytical instrumentation, services and training for investigators from universities across Canada, government agencies, the resource and environmental industries and the international community.

Research services

Sample preparation
Method development
Radiogenic isotope analysis
Heavy/transition metal and light stable isotope analysis
High-resolution elemental analysis (concentration)
In situ laser ablation
Geochronology
Raman Spectroscopy

Sectors of application

Agriculture, animal science and food

Arts and cultural industries

Chemical industries

Energy (renewable and fossil)

Environmental technologies and related services

Fisheries and aquaculture

Forestry and forest-based industries

Life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment

Mining, minerals and metals

Ocean industries

Specialized labs and equipment

Specialized facility	Equipment	Function
nUBC	Nu Instruments Plasma 1700 high-resolution multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Radiogenic and heavy/transition metal stable isotopes, especially challenging isotope systems (e.g., iron (Fe), chromium (Cr), silicon (Si)).
	Nu Instruments Plasma II multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Radiogenic (neodymium (Nd), hafnium (Hf), lead (Pb)) and stable (lithium (Li), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), molybdenum (Mo), cadmium (Cd)) isotopes.
	Nu Instruments AttoM high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Elemental analysis of most elements in solution at sub-parts-per-trillion level; low-level isotopic analysis; in situ analysis coupled with laser ablation.
	Agilent 7700x quadrupole inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Trace elements, in solutions and solids (laser ablation),
	Resonetics RESOlution M-50-LR laser	In situ trace elements and uranium-lead (U-Pb) dating (laser ablation).
	Nu Instruments thermal ionization mass spectrometer	Strontium (Sr) and neodymium (Nd) isotopes.
Clean Labs	Three (3) low-level trace-metal Class 100 clean rooms with Class 100 laminar flow hoods	Sample preparation in a certified clean environment, with strict gowning and access protocols, where airborne particles are controlled via specialized HEPA filters.
LaserSpot	Horiba XploRA Plus 532 nanometre Raman microscope	Preparation, imaging, and data processing of both in-situ and micro-analysis.
	Nikon Eclipse Ci-POL polarized light petrographic microscope	Preparation, imaging, and data processing of both in-situ and micro-analysis.
	Nikon SMZ18 binocular microscope with C-FDF light source	Preparation, imaging, and data processing of both in-situ and micro-analysis.
	Nikon DS-Fi2 camera with Nikon Digital Sight DS-U3	Preparation, imaging, and data processing of both in-situ and micro-analysis.
	New Wave Research (ESI) MicroMill with Olympus SZ61 optics	Preparation, imaging, and data processing of both in-situ and micro-analysis.
Element Lab	Thermo Fisher Scientific Element2 high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Elemental analysis of most elements in solution at sub-parts-per-trillion level; in situ analysis coupled with laser ablation.
	New Wave Research NWR193UC laser	In situ trace elements (laser ablation).
MC-ICP-MS Lab	Nu Instruments Plasma multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer	Radiogenic (neodymium (Nd), hafnium (Hf), lead (Pb)) and stable (lithium (Li), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), molybdenum (Mo), cadmium (Cd)) isotopes.
Stable Isotope Lab	Elementar Isoprime 100 isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS) with Vario Micro Cube elemental analyzer	Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) isotopes, C and N elemental analysis.
Geochronology Lab	Nu Instruments thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS)	High-precision uranium-lead (U-Pb) dating.
	Micromass VG354S thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS)	Uranium-lead (U-Pb) dating.
	Micromass VG54R thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS)	Uranium-lead (U-Pb) dating; lead (Pb) isotopes.

Private and public sector research partners

R&D partners:

Nu Instruments
Savillex

MAGNET industry partners:

Geosyntec Consultants
Golder Associates
Lorax Environmental
Nu Instruments
Teck Resources

BeeHIVE research partners:

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
BC Ministry of Agriculture
Environment and Climate Change Canada
Hives for Humanity
Worker Bee Honey Company

Additional information

Title	URL
PCIGR publications.	https://pcigr.ubc.ca/research/publications
Multidisciplinary Applied Geochemistry Network (MAGNET).	http://www.magnet.eos.ubc.ca/
Bee Health, Impact, and Value in the Environment (BeeHIVE) UBC Research Excellence Cluster.	https://beehive.ubc.ca/
Indigenous/Science UBC Research Excellence Cluster.	https://indigenousscience.ubc.ca/