Neoarchaean and Palaeoproterozoic tectono-metamorphic events along the southern margin of the Zimbabwe craton: Insights from muscovite 40Ar/39Ar geochronology from rare-metal pegmatites, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Muscovite ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology on ten samples from complex-type, rare-metal (e.g., Li, Cs, Ta, Rb, Be, Nb, Sn and W) pegmatites from the Bikita and Mweza pegmatite fields in Zimbabwe yield ages that range from ca. 2622–1940 Ma. One pegmatite from the Bikita field yield a relict age of ca. 2622 Ma which is similar to the ca. 2.62 Ga emplacement age of the Main Bikita Pegmatite previously determined by laser ablation analyses of Ta–Nb–Sn oxides. Younger muscovite ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages of ca. 2580–2539 Ma in the Bikita field may reflect post-pegmatite emplacement tectono-thermal events under fluid-mediated conditions. Data from the Mweza pegmatite district yield dates of ca. 2027–1940 Ma which reflect a Palaeoproterozoic overprint. Palaeoproterozoic ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages are spatially restricted to near the Northern Marginal Zone–Zimbabwe Craton boundary and are absent towards the interior of the craton in the Bikita pegmatite field.