Which method is used for determining the age of organic materials based on the radioisotope carbon-14?

Radiocarbon dating is the method used to determine the age of organic materials by measuring the amount of carbon-14 present in a sample. Carbon-14 is a radioactive isotope of carbon that is formed in the atmosphere and taken up by living organisms. When an organism dies, it stops taking in carbon-14, and the isotope begins to decay at a known rate (its half-life is about 5,730 years). By measuring the remaining carbon-14 in a sample, scientists can calculate how long it has been since the organism's death, thus determining the age of the sample.

Other methods, such as thermoluminescence, are used for dating inorganic materials like ceramics or burnt flint, whereas stratigraphy is a technique for understanding the sequence of layers in archaeological sites. Dendrochronology is based on the analysis of tree rings to date wooden objects. These methods apply to different materials or contexts, making radiocarbon dating uniquely effective for organic remains up to around 50,000 years old.