Our Story

PEM Inc. grew out of graduate studies at Harvard University, Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences, and my time at Biosphere 2, in Tucson, AZ. The need for a single instrument field  platform that simultaneously measures the 12CO2, 13CO2 and 14CO2 isotopic composition of a gas with high precision and frequency (10 Hz) has been and still is a goal for PEM. 14CO2 is the only conserved direct diagnostic tracer for fossil fuel CO2.  Surprisingly, given the importance of fossil fuel CO2 measurements, the data rate for atmospheric 14CO2 is low relative to 12CO2 and 13CO2.  The goal of PEM is to develop and acquire field ready analyzers for 14CO2 to understand how to manage the Earth as a system that both preserves the planet and provides a sustained biosphere for future generations.