An Experimental Geochemistry Perspective on Earth's Core Formation

In this chapter, we present a review of experimental data in geochemistry used to place constraints on Earth's accretion and core formation. Siderophile element abundances combined with partitioning experiments potentially give insights about pressure, temperature, and oxygen fugacity conditions during core formation. The interplay between siderophile partitioning and light elements in the core can help depict accurate models of accretion and core formation eventually. Additionally, resolvable metal-silicate isotopic fractionations in core formation experiments have been evidenced over the past few years. This new experimental tool merging the fields of experimental petrology and isotope geochemistry represents a promising approach, providing new independent constraints on the nature of light elements in the core and the conditions of Earth's core formation.