Strategies towards robust interpretations of in situ zircon Lu–Hf isotope analyses

The combination of U–Pb and Lu–Hf compositions measured in zircon crystals is a remarkably powerful isotopic couplet that provides measures on both the timing of mineral growth and the radiogenic enrichment of the source from which the zircon grew. The U–Pb age documents the timing of zircon crystallization/recrystallization and Hf isotopes inform on the degree to which the host melt was derived from a radiogenic reservoir (e.g. depleted mantle) versus an unradiogenic reservoir (e.g. ancient continental crust), or some mixture of these sources. The ease of generating large quantities of zircon U–Pb and Lu–Hf data has been in large part facilitated by instrument advances. However, the dramatic increase in time constrained zircon Lu–Hf analyses in the Earth science community has brought to the fore the importance of careful data collection and reduction workflows, onto which robust geological interpretations may be based. In this work, we discuss the fundamentals of Lu–Hf isotopes in zircon, which then allows us to provide a robust, accessible, methodology for the assessment of data quality. Additionally, we discuss some novel techniques for: data visualization — that facilitates better transparency of data interpretation; integration of geographic information — that may reveal spatial trends where temporal trends were only apparent before; and some novel statistical evaluation tools — that may provide more rigorous inter- and intra-sample comparisons. [Display omitted] •U–Pb and Hf in zircon is a powerful tool to understand crustal growth and evolution.•Fundamentals of Hf isotopes in zircon inform methodology and data assessment.•Novel techniques for visualization, integration of geography, and statistical tests.