- the determination of the age of objects of organic origin by measurement of the radioactivity of their carbon content.
- a technique for determining the age of organic materials, such as wood, based on their content of the radioisotope 14 C acquired from the atmosphere when they formed part of a living plant. The 14 C decays to the nitrogen isotope 14 N with a half-life of 5730 years. Measurement of the amount of radioactive carbon remaining in the material thus gives an estimate of its age
