SIMS U–Pb zircon geochronology of porphyry Cu–Au–(Mo) deposits in the Yangtze River Metallogenic Belt, eastern China: Magmatic response to early Cretaceous lithospheric extension

The middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River is one of the most important metallogenic belts in China, hosting numerous Cu–Fe–Au–Mo deposits. Previous chronological and geochemical investigations mostly focused on the magmatic rocks and associated deposits in the lower reaches of the river, but the timing and genesis of the Cu–Au–(Mo) mineralized porphyries in the middle reaches are yet to be well constrained. In this study we carried out...