Hydrothermal cleft monazite SIMS Th-Pb age data, central Alps

Ion probe (SIMS) Th-Pb age measurements of hydrothermal fissure/cleft monazite from the central Alps. The sample area encompasses most of the Lepontine metamorphic dome, the eastern Rhone-Simplon Line, southern Gotthard Nappe and the Forcola Fault.

The ages directly date deformation during part of the exhumation and cooling history of the Lepontine dome and deformation along the Rhone-Simplon fault zone. The ages of all crystals range from ca. 19 to 5 Ma, with age distribution and internal crystal structure facilitating to distinguish between areas whose deformational history was dominated by distinct tectonic events or continuous exhumation.