Analyzing the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern North China Craton based on SKS wave splitting

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-3230507/v1

Download PDF

Research Article

Analyzing the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern North China Craton based on SKS wave splitting

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3230507/v1

This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License

Version 1

posted

You are reading this latest preprint version

Based on teleseismic events recorded at 52 broadband temporary seismic stations in the Hebei Seismic Network, the SKS wave splitting parameters, including the polarization orientation of the fast shear wave and the delay time between the fast and slow waves at each station, were determined, and then, the structure of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern North China Craton (NCC) was acquired. The results of this study reveal that the fast wave directions are basically in the NWW direction with a mean value of N99.2°E±15.4°, and the delay times are about 0.93±0.11 s, corresponding to a 107±13 km thick anisotropic layer. The research results imply that the anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC mainly resides in the upper mantle, and most of it may reside in the asthenosphere. The results show that the anisotropy parameters of the Eastern Blocks (ENCC) and the Trans-North China Orogen (CNCC) are relatively consistent, indicating that the differences in the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC are smaller. The deformation model of the crust and upper mantle could be both a simple asthenosphere flow model and vertical coherent deformation model based on comparison of the direction of the absolute plate movement, regional lithospheric extension, the crustal fast wave, and velocity field of China based on global positioning system (GPS) data.

northeastern North China Craton

SKS wave splitting

upper mantle

anisotropy

The anisotropy beneath the northeastern North China Craton (NCC) is in the asthenosphere
The differences between the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy of the eastern and central NCC are small
The northeastern NCC has a complex deformation model of the crust and upper mantle

The North China Craton (NCC) is one of the oldest Archean cratons in the world. It is located at the eastern margin of the Eurasian Plate (Liu et al. 1992). According to the differences in the lithological, geochemical, structural, and P-T path constraints and the tectonic evolution, the NCC can be divided into three main zones, namely the Eastern Blocks (ENCC), Western Blocks (WNCC) and Trans-North China Orogen (CNCC), which is separated by the ENCC and WNCC (Zhao et al. 2001). Different from other typical cratons in the world, the NCC experienced large-scale tectonic deformation and intense magmatic activity from the Late Mesozoic to Cenozoic, and then, it formed a complex crust-mantle structure. In contrast to the long-term stabilization of the WNCC, which has typical craton characteristics, lithospheric thinning and destruction occurred in the ENCC, resulting in the disappearance of the lithospheric root (Hu et al. 2017; Lebedev and Nolet 2003; Zhu and Zheng 2009). Based on geological and geophysical surveys, researchers have discussed the tectonic evolution process and deformation mechanism of the NCC in depth. However, there are still many different perspectives regarding the destruction process and its mechanism. At present, there are two main perspectives regarding the destruction mechanism of the NCC: delamination and thermal erosion (Deng et al. 1994; Gao et al. 2004, 2008; Menzies et al. 1993; Xu 2001; Zhang et al. 2002; Zheng et al. 1998, 2007). Regardless of the type of destruction mechanism, it was related to the transport and conversion of lithospheric materials in the NCC (Wang et al. 2012). Therefore, studying the lithospheric structure can provide a certain amount of technical support for the dynamic interpretation of the destruction of the NCC.

Seismic anisotropy is one of the most directional and effective methods for studying lithospheric deformation and mantle flow (Long and Silver 2009; Savage 1999; Silver 1996). Upper mantle anisotropy is generally considered to be caused by the alignment of the upper mantle peridotite lattice parallel to the deformation direction. In addition, it reflects the internal deformation process in the continental detached lithosphere produced by tectonic movement (Bystricky 2000; Tommasi et al. 2000; Zhang 2002; Zhang and Karato 1995). Therefore, it is possible to speculate on the movement pattern of materials in the Earth's interior based on the anisotropy. Shear wave splitting occurs whenever an S-wave travels through an anisotropic layer. When this occurs, the S-wave is split into two waves that propagate at different speeds and are polarized in two perpendicular orientations (Silver and Chan 1991). This is described by two splitting parameters: the polarization orientation of the fast shear wave (φ) and the delay time between the fast and slow waves (δt). The former can characterize the orientation of asthenospheric flow, while the latter can characterize the depth extent of the mantle strain fields (Conrad et al. 2007; Savage 1999; Silver 1996). The SKS wave has the advantages of a high lateral resolution, approximate vertical incidence of 85–130° from the epicenter, and easy separation from other seismic phases, making it one of the ideal phases for use in the shear wave splitting method (Zhang et al. 2012).

As one of the most severely damaged areas in the entire NCC, the northeastern part has attracted the attention of experts and scholars regarding its deep tectonic pattern. A large number of research results on the anisotropy characteristics of the upper mantle in this region have been produced using the SKS wave splitting technique. However, due to differences in the data and algorithms, there are some conflicts between these results. In the ENCC, it is generally speculated that asthenospheric mantle flow plays a major role in the lithosphere deformation. In addition, the subduction of the Pacific Plate has resulted in asthenopheric material upwelling, which has caused regional mantle flow (Chang et al. 2009; Liu et al. 2008; Luo et al. 2004; Zhao et al. 2005, 2007). However in CNCC, the results are controversial. According to Zhao (2005, 2007), it is obviously different from that in the ENCC, and lithosphere de-rooting has not occurred or the de-rooting is not obvious. Other studies have shown that the fast shear wave direction of the upper mantle is similar to that in the ENCC, suggesting that the cause of the anisotropy is the same in the CNCC and ENCC. In addition, in both sections of the NCC, it is caused by the asthenospheric mantle flow (Chang et al. 2009, 2012; Liu et al. 2008; Luo et al. 2004). In recent years, a dense and uniformly distributed seismic observation network has been deployed in the northeastern NCC, and a large number of high-quality broadband digital seismic records have been obtained. This will contribute to the in-depth studies of the anisotropic characteristics and dynamics of the upper mantle in this region.

In this study, we used data from permanent seismic stations beneath the northeastern NCC, and the SKS wave was used for shear wave splitting measurements (Fig. 1). The study area crosses the northern ENCC and CNCC and includes part of the WNCC. A fine description of the anisotropic structure of the upper mantle under the NCC was obtained in this study. Compared with the results of previous studies and the results obtained using other geophysical methods, the possible causes of the anisotropy of the upper mantle were analyzed from the perspective of the lithosphere and asthenosphere. The results of this study provide a reference for establishing a structure model of the upper mantle under the northeastern NCC in the future.

To study the features of the SKS wave splitting beneath the northeastern NCC, we collected seismic data recorded by the Hebei Seismic Network, which includes 52 broadband temporary seismic stations in this region. Based on the Harvard centroid moment tensor (CMT) catalogue, we used high-quality SKS data for teleseismic events with magnitudes of greater than M_S5.5 from 85–130° to measure the anisotropic parameters of the upper mantle in this study. Finally, a total of 60 earthquake events were selected (Fig. 2). The events used mainly occurred in the Tonga-Fiji Islands in the South Pacific, but there were also a small number of events in other regions. The distribution of the event orientations generally meets the research requirements.

There are three common measurement methods for SKS wave splitting: the minimum energy (SC) method, rotation-correlation (RC) method and eigenvalue (EV) method. All three techniques perform a grid-search for the splitting parameters φ and δt. The difference is that the SC method searches for the minimum energy on the transverse component; the RC method uses the maximization of the cross-correlation coefficient between the waveforms on the radial and transverse components; and the EV method makes the second eigenvalue of the corrected covariance matrix the smallest through searching (Bowman and Ando 1987; Silver and Chan 1988, 1991; Vinnik et al. 1984).

In this study, the SplitLab analysis software (W$\ddot{\text{u}}$stefeld et al. 2008), which combines the SC method, RC method and EV method, was used to obtain the anisotropic parameters. The respective characteristics of the three methods can be used to determine the quality of the results and identify invalid results (W$\ddot{\text{u}}$stefeld and Bokelmann 2007). To improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the SKS wave in teleseismic records when selecting waveforms, it is necessary to filter the data before calculation. A frequency range of 0.02-1 Hz was chosen. Then, based on the International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth’s Interior developed in 1991 (IASP91) model (Kennett and Engdahl 1991), the arrival time of the theoretical SKS wave was calculated, and the intercept at least one complete cycle containing the signal near it was used for the shear wave splitting calculation. Figure 3 presents the results of one example. It shows that the shear wave splitting parameters obtained using the different methods are consistent with the waveform data with a high signal-to-noise ratio. It also indicates the reliability of this calculation method.

According to the judgment criteria proposed by Barruol et al. (1997) and W$\ddot{\text{u}}$stefel et al. (2008) in this study, based on the signal-to-noise ratio of the initial SKS wave, the rectilinear polarization of the particle motion after correction, the well-defined extreme value of the contour plot, and the consistency of the splitting parameters obtained using the three methods were used to divide the results into high-quality valid results (good), general results (fair), unreliable results (poor), and invalid results (null). Only the good and fair results were retained and used in the subsequent analysis and discussion. To ensure the reliability and stability of the results (Vecsey et al. 2008), we finally chose the splitting parameters determined using the SC method to analyze the shear wave splitting calculation.

According to the method described above, a total of 798 pairs of SKS wave splitting results obtained at 52 permanent seismic stations in the northeastern NCC were used to infer the upper mantle structure in this region. Only invalid results (marked null) were obtained for 15 stations, and 452 pairs of results (marked good or fair) were obtained are 37 stations, which were averaged using all of the anisotropic parameters for the same station. The results show that the data from stations FEN, SHY, YUX, and XIT are rich, and the anisotropic parameters obtained from the data for these stations have low standard deviations after averaging. The reliability of these results are high. Less data were obtained from stations FHY, BDH, and LNQ, but the SKS waves were clear and the signal-to-noise ratios of the teleseimic records were high. Therefore, the results for these stations also have certain reference value.

Based on the results of the SKS shear wave splitting (Table 1), the delay times between the fast and slow waves varied from 0.5 s to 1.3 s, with an average value of 0.93±0.11 s; while the fast wave directions were N71.6°E to N148.9°E, with a mean value of N99.2°E±15.4°. Then, we compared the measurement results with the results of previous studies. It was found that compared with the results of Chang et al. (2008), at 13 stations (e.g., stations LLM, MIY, and SSL), the results of our measured anisotropy parameters are relatively consistent, the difference is less than 10°, and the difference between the results for SSL station is only 1.4°. Compared with the results of Shi et al. (2015) and Li and Niu (2010), the difference in the results for 7 stations and 8 stations is less than 10°, respectively. In addition, the delay times of most of the stations obtained by Chang et al. (2008), Shi et al. (2015), and Li and Niu (2010) is about 1 s, which is also consistent with the results of this study. In general, the results obtained are basically the same as those of previous studies, indicating that the SKS wave splitting results obtained in this study are reliable.

To clarify the characteristics of the anisotropy in the study area, we divided it into two parts along the boundary line between the ENCC and CNCC. The ENCC and CNCC are in Part A and Part B, respectively. Because valid data was obtained from only two stations in the WNCC, and these stations are close to CNCC, the results for these station were incorporated into Part B for analysis. The anisotropic parameters are shown in Figure 4, which shows that the polarization orientations of fast shear waves beneath these stations are consistent in Part A, trending from N83°E to N112.4°E, with an average value of nearly N98.0°E±5.9. The delay times range from 0.80 s to 1.34 s, with an average value of 0.94±0.11 s. Compared with Part A, the polarization orientations of the fast shear waves of in Part B are more chaotic and vary from N71.6°E to N148.9°E, with an average value of N99.9°E±18.9°. However, the time delays are relatively stable at 0.92±0.11 s. By comparing the anisotropic parameters measured in these two regions, it was found that the results are consistent, which may suggest that the differences in the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC are small.

4.1Thickness of anisotropic layer

The upper mantle anisotropy caused by the alignment of the upper mantle peridotite lattice parallel to the deformation direction could cause the SKS wave to split into two waves, which are polarized in two perpendicular orientations. The travel time difference between the fast and slow waves is the delay time (Silver and Chan 1991; Zheng and Gao 1994). According to the contents of the peridotite and other minerals in the upper mantle, the measurement results show that if the delay time is 1 s, the thickness of the anisotropic layer may be 115 km (McNamara et al. 1994). The delay time obtained from the SKS wave splitting results for the northeastern NCC is 0.93 ± 0.11 s, which corresponds to a 107 ± 13 km thick anisotropic layer.

The thickness of the crustal structure in North China is about 35 km (Jia and Zhang 2005; Li et al. 2006). The results measured from the shear wave splitting during local earthquakes show that the delay time of the crustal anisotropy in this region is about 3.55 ms/km (Wu et al. 2009). Assuming that the anisotropy of the crustal structure is approximately uniformly distributed, and the delay time generated by the crust is estimated to be about 0.1 s, which is basically consistent with the delay time of the crustal anisotropy in eastern China obtained based on the PpSms wave (Iidaka and Niu 2001). Moreover, the delay time of 0.1 s is much less than the delay time obtained from the SKS wave splitting. In addition, the research results based on the travel time data for the Sg and SmS waves show that for the anisotropic structure of the crust, the anisotropy is less than 2% (Carbonell et al. 2000; Readman et al. 2009; Satarugsa and Johnson 2000). This suggests that the anisotropy of the crust is weak, so the anisotropy mainly resides in the upper mantle beneath the northeastern NCC. The average thickness of the lithosphere in the NCC is about 80 km (An and Shi 2006; Chen et al. 2008, 2009; Jiang et al. 2013; Wang et al. 2013, 2016; Wei et al. 2006, 2015, 2008). By subtracting the average crust thickness of this region (35 km), it was determined that the average thickness of the mantle lithosphere is obtained to be about 45 km. If 4% anisotropy is assumed and the average S-wave velocity is 4.60 km/s, the delay time of the fast and slow waves in the mantle lithosphere is about 0.3 s (Ben-Ismil et al. 2001; Mainprice and Silver 1993). Considering the delay time of 0.93 s in the northeastern NCC, the delay time caused by lithospheric anisotropy is only a small part of the SKS wave splitting, and thus, most of the anisotropy in this region may be from the asthenosphere. Overall, this suggests that the anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC mainly resides in the upper mantle, and most of it may reside in the asthenosphere.

4.2 Cause of anisotropy and its dynamic significance

The movement pattern of the materials in the Earth's interior can be inferred from the anisotropy, which can be used to understand the characteristics of upper mantle deformation and mantle flow (Long and Silver 2009). According to the anisotropic parameters measured for the northeastern NCC, the anisotropic parameters of the ENCC and CNCC are relatively consistent, indicating that the anisotropic characteristics of the upper mantle structure are stable. This suggests that the difference in the deformation of the lithosphere beneath this region is small. The results obtained through Rayleigh waves inversion and receiving function imaging technology show that the lithosphere in the ENCC and CNCC is relatively thin and the difference is small, which is consistent with the anisotropic parameters we calculated for Part A and Part B (Chen et al. 2006, 2008; Li et al. 2009). The polarization orientations of the fast shear wave at the four stations (i.e., stations ZHB, SHY, HUA, and ZJK) near the WNCC exhibit two different advantages. The fast wave directions at stations HUA and SHY are NWW, which be similar to the average fast wave directions in the ENCC and CNCC. However, the direction at stations ZHB and ZJK is NE. In addition, the delay times (at stations HUA, ZJK, and ZHB) range from 0.76 s to 0.79 s, which is significantly lower than the delay time of about 0.93 s in the ENCC and CNCC. Thus, it is speculated that the lithospheric deformation in the WNCC is different from that in the ENCC and CNCC, resulting in relatively complex anisotropy in the junction area of the CNCC and WNCC.

At present, based on the assumption of the driving force of plate tectonics, dynamic models of the crust and mantle deformation mainly include the simple asthenosphere flow model (SAF) and vertical coherent deformation model (VCD) (Silver 1996). The former reflects the decoupling of the overlying block from the lower part of the mantle along the mechanically weak asthenosphere, and the deformation of the mantle is caused by the velocity difference between the top and bottom of the asthenosphere. The latter indicates that the crust is strongly coupled to the mantle, and the deformation field of the mantle is the same as the crustal deformation field (Wang et al. 2017). Vinnik et al. (1992) pointed out that if the fast wave direction is consistent with the direction of the absolute plate motion (APM), implying that the asthenospheric mantle flow driven by the APM plays a major role in the observed upper mantle anisotropy. The direction of the AMP in eastern China obtained using the HS3-NUVEL1a model (Gripp and Gordon 2002) relative to the lithosphere with a no-net-rotation reference frame is about N72°W, and the direction obtained using the NNR-MORVEL56 model (Argus et al. 2011) is about N105°E. The fast wave direction at most of the stations (e.g., stations XLD, KUC, and ZKD) in the study area is NWW, which is similar to the APM directions in the two models (Fig. 5), indicating that the anisotropy of the upper mantle beneath the northeastern NCC is mainly caused by the mantle flow. Furthermore, the delay times at each station in the study area are mainly caused by the anisotropy of the asthenosphere, so it is concluded that the crust and mantle deformation model for the northeastern NCC should be the SAF model. It is suggested that the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern CNN is mainly caused by the subduction of the Pacific Plate under the Eurasian Plate. The subduction of the Pacific Plate has resulted in the asthenospheric deformation in this region, and it has caused the alignment of the upper mantle peridotite lattice to be parallel to the deformation direction.

Since the Late Mesozoic, the NCC has undergone a series of intense lithospheric extension events (Menzies and Xu 1998), which have made the regional lithospheric extension direction of the upper crust in the northeastern NCC to be NWW (Wang et al. 2007). The polarization orientation of the fast shear wave in the crust beneath the North China is N95.1°E, suggesting that the maximum principal compressive stress in this region is oriented NWW-SEE (Gao et al. 2011). In addition, the velocity field of China based on global positioning system (GPS) data shows that it tends to be SEE in the study area (Niu et al. 2005; Wang et al. 2001; Zhao et al. 2015) (Fig. 5). The above results are basically consistent with the fast wave direction of the anisotropic layer in the upper mantle beneath the northeastern NCC obtained in this study. This indicates that the lithospheric extension in the northeastern NCC from the Late Mesozoic to the Cenozoic made the deformation direction of lithosphere the same as the fast wave direction of the anisotropic layer, and the deformation of the crustal material is consistent with that of the upper mantle material. It is possible that the crustal and mantle deformation beneath the northeastern NCC is vertical coherent deformation.

Based on the results regarding the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC, the average fast wave direction is N99.2°E ± 15.4°, and the delay time between the fast and slow waves is 0.93 ± 0.11 s, which corresponds to a 107 ± 13 km thick anisotropic layer. The results show that the anisotropy parameters of the ENCC and CNCC are relatively consistent, indicating that the differences in the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC are small. Based on the delay time, the anisotropy beneath the northeastern NCC mainly resides in the upper mantle, and most of it may reside in the asthenosphere. The direction of the absolute plate movement in this region is consistent with the fast wave direction, indicating that the upper mantle anisotropy is mainly caused by the mantle flow. In addition, the fast wave direction in the upper mantle is the same as the directions of the regional crustal and lithospheric extension, the crustal fast wave, and the velocity field of China based on GPS. This indicates that the deformation of the crust and mantle beneath the northeastern NCC may be vertical coherent deformation. It is inferred that the northeastern NCC has a complex crust and mantle deformation structure, which not only conforms to the SAF model, but also has vertical coherent deformation.

Acknowledgements The waveform data for this study were provided by the Hebei Seismic Network and Professor W stefeld provided the program for the SKS splitting. The authors thank them for all the support.

Data The datasets analyzed during the current study are publicly available.

Author contribution Yi Zhou and Xiang Wang contributed to the study’s conception and design. Data collection, calculation and analysis were preformed by Yi Zhou and Jing Wang. Yi Zhou wrote the first draft of the manuscript and prepared the figures. Xiang Wang commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Funding This research was supported by the Spark Program of Earthquake Technology of Hebei Earthquake Agency, China (No. DZ2021121700014), the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province, China (No. D2020210009), and the Science and Technology Project of Hebei Education Department, China (No. BJ2021036).

Ethics approval and consent to participate Not applicable.

Consent for publication Not applicable.

Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests.

An M, Shi Y (2006) Lithospheric thickness of the Chinese continent. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors 159(3–4):257–266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pepi.2006.08.002
Argus DF, Gordon RG, DeMets C (2015) Geologically current motion of 56 plates relative to the no-net-rotation reference frame. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 12(11)
Barruol G, Silver PG, Vauchez A (1997) Seismic anisotropy in the eastern United States: Deep structure of a complex continental plate. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 102(B4):8329–8348. https://doi.org/10.1029/96JB03800
Ben-Ismail W, Barruol G, Mainprice D (2001) The Kaapvaal craton seismic anisotropy: Petrophysical analyses of upper mantle kimberlite nodules. Geophysical Research Letters 28:2497–2500.
Bowman JR, Ando M (1987) Shear-wave splitting in the upper-mantle wedge above the Tonga subduction zone. Geophysical Journal International 88(1):25–41. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.1987.tb01367.x
Bystricky M (2000) High shear strain of olivine aggregates: rheological and seismic consequences. Science 290(5496):1564–1567
Carbonell R, Gallart J, P
$\stackrel{´}{\text{e}}$
rez-Esta
$\stackrel{´}{\text{u}}$
n A, Diaz S, Kashubin S (2000) Seismic wide-angle constrains on the crust of the southern Urals. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 115(B6):13755–13777
Conrad CP, Behn MD, Silver PG (2007) Global mantle flow and the development of seismic anisotropy, differences between the oceanic and continental upper mantle. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 112(B7). https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JB004608
Chang LJ, Wang CY, Ding ZF (2008) A study on SKS splitting beneath Capital area of China. Acta Seismologica Sinica. 30(6):551–559
Chang LJ, Wang CY, Ding ZF (2009) Seismic anisotropy of upper mantle in eastern China. Sci China Ser D-Earth Sc 52(6):774–783
Chang LJ, Wang CY, Ding ZF (2012) Upper mantle anisotropy beneath North China from shear wave splitting measurements. Tectonophysics 522–523, 235–242
Chen L, Cheng C, Wei ZG (2009) Seismic evidence for significant lateral variations in lithospheric thickness beneath the central and western North China Craton. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 285:171–183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2009.06.022
Chen L, Wang T, Zhao L, Zheng T (2008) Distinct lateral variation of lithospheric thickness in the Northeastern North China Craton. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 267:56–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2007.11.024
Chen L, Zheng TY, Xu WW (2006) A thinned lithospheric image of the Tanlu Fault Zone, eastern China: Constructed from wave equation based receiver function migration. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 111:B09312. https://doi.org/10.1029/2005JB003974
Deng JF, Mo XX, Zhao HL, Luo ZH, Du YS (1994) Lithosphere root/de-root and activation of the east China continent. Geoscience 8(3):349–356
Gao S, Rudnick RL, Xu WL, Yuan HL, Liu YS, Walker RJ, Puchtel IS, Liu XM, Huang H, Wang XR, Yang J (2008) Recycling deep cratonic lithosphere and generation of intraplate magmatism in the North China Craton. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 270(1–2):41–53
Gao S, Rudnick RL, Yuan HL, Liu XM, Liu YS, Xu WL, Lin WL, Ayers J, Wang XC, Wang QH (2004) Recycling lower continental crust in the North China Craton. Nature 432:892–897
Gao Y, Wu J, Fukao Y, Shi Y, Zhu A (2011) Shear-wave splitting in the crust in North China: stress, faults and tectonic implications. Geophysical Journal International 187(2):642–654. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2011.05200.x
Gripp AE, Gordon RG (2002) Young tracks of hotspots and current plate velocities. Geophysical Journal International 150(2):321–361
Hu G, Teng JW, He ZQ, Ding ZF (2017) A traveltime tomography study by teleseismic S wave data in the northeastern part of North China Craton. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 60(5),1703–1712. https://doi.org/10.6038/cjg20170508
Iidaka T, Niu F (2001) Mantle and crust anisotropy in the eastern China region inferred from waveform splitting of SKS and PpSms. Earth Planet Space 53:159–168
Jia SX, Zhang XK (2005) Crustal structure and comparison of different tectonic blocks in North China. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 48(3):611–620. https://doi.org/10.1002/cjg2.700
Jiang MW, An Y, Chen L, Yang Y (2013) Local modification of the lithosphere beneath the central and western North China Craton: 3-D constraints from Rayleigh wave tomography. Gondwana Research 24:849–864. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gr.2012.06.018
Kennett BL, Engdahl ER (1991) Traveltimes for global earthquake location and phase identification. Geophysical Journal International 105(2):429–465
Lebedev S, Nolet G (2003) Upper mantle beneath Southeast Asia from S velocity tomography. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 108(B1):2048
Li J, Niu FL (2010) Seismic anisotropy and mantle flow beneath northeast China inferred from regional seismic networks. Journal of Geophysical Research 115(B12). https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JB007470
Li SL, Mooney WD, Fan J (2006) Crustal structure of mainland China from deep seismic sounding data. Tectonophysics 420:239–252
Li YH, Wu QJ, Zhang RQ, Pan J, Zhang F, Zeng R (2009) The lithospheric thinning of the North China Craton inferred from Rayleigh waves inversion. Geophysical Journal International 177:1334–1342. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2009.04169.x
Liu DY, Nutman AP, Compston W, Wu JS, Shen QH (1992) Remnants of ≥ 3800 Ma crust in the Chinese part of the Sino-Korean Craton. Geology 20(4):339–343
Liu KH, Gao SS, Gao Y, Wu J (2008) Shear wave splitting and mantle flow associated with the deflected Pacific slab beneath northeast Asia. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 113(B1):B01305. https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JB005178
Long MD, Silver PG (2009) Shear wave splitting and mantle anisotropy: measurements, interpretations, and new directions. Surveys in Geophysics 30(4–5):407–461
Luo Y, Huang ZX, Peng YJ, Zheng YJ (2004) A study on SKS wave splitting beneath the China mainland and adjacent regions. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 47(5):812–821
McNamara DE, Owens TJ, Silver PG, Wu FT (1994) Shear wave anisotropy beneath the Tibetan Plateau. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 99(B7):13655–13665. https://doi.org/10.1029/93jb03406
Mainprice D, Silver PG (1993) Interpretation of SKS-waves using samples from the subcontinental lithosphere. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors 78:257–280. https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9201(93)90160-B
Menzies MA, Fan WM, Zhang M (1993) Palaeozoic and Cenozoic lithoprobes and the loss > 120 km of Achaean lithosphere, Sino-Korean craton, China. Geological Society, London, Special Publications 76(1):71–81
Menzies MA, Xu YG (1998) Geodynamics of the North China Craton. Mantle Dynamics and Plate Interactions in East Asia, Washington, DC: American Geophysical Union 155–165
Niu ZJ, WangM, Sun HR, Sun JZ, You, XZ, Gan WJ, Xue GJ, Hao JX, Xin SH, Wang YQ, Wang YX, Li B (2005) Contemporary velocity field of crustal movement of Chinese mainland from Global Positioning System measurements. Chinese Science Bulletin 50(8):839–840. https://doi.org/10.1360/982005-220
Readman PW, Hauser F, O’Reilly BM, Do VC (2009) Crustal anisotropy in southwest Ireland from analysis of controlled source shear-wave data. Tectonophysics 474(3–4):571–583. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2009.04.029
Satarugsa P, Johnson RA (2000) Constraints on crustal composition beneath a metamorphic core complex: results from 3-component wide-angle seismic data along the eastern flank of the Ruby Mountains, Nevada. Tectonophysics 329:223–250. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0040-1951(00)00197-9
Savage MK (1999) Seismic anisotropy and mantle deformation: What have we learned from shear wave splitting? Reviews of Geophysics 31(1):65–106
Silver PG (1996) Seismic anisotropy beneath the continents: probing the depths of geology. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences 24:385–432. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.earth.24.1.385
Silver PG, Chan WW (1988) Implications for contimental structure and evolution from seismic anisotropy. Nature 335(6185):34–39. https://doi.org/10.1038/335034a0
Silver PG, Chan WW (1991) Shear wave splitting and subcontinental mantle deformation. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 96(10):16429–16454. https://doi.org/10.1029/91JB00899
Shi YT, Cao Y, Tai LX, Fu YY (2015) The shear-wave splitting in the crust and the upper mantle around the Bohai Sea, North China. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences 111:505–516. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2015.06.015
Tommasi A, Mainprice D, Canova G (2000) Viscoplastic self-consistent and equilibrium-based modeling of olivine lattice preferred orientations: implications for the upper mantle seismic anisotropy. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 105(B4):7893–7908. https://doi.org/10.1029/1999JB900411
Vecsey L, Plomerov
$\stackrel{´}{\text{a}}$
J, Babu
$\stackrel{˘}{\text{s}}$
ka V (2008) Shear-wave splitting measurements-problems and solutions. Tectonophysics 462(1):178–196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2008.01.021
Vinnik LP, Makeyeva LI, Milev A, Usenko AY (1992) Global patterns of azimuthal anisotropy and deformations in the continental mantle. Geophysical Journal International 111:433–447. https://doi.org/10.1011/j.1365-246X.1992.tb02102.x
Wang CY, Wu QJ, Duan YH, Wang ZS, Lou H (2017) Crustal and upper mantle structure and deep tectonic genesis of large earthquakes in North China. Science China: Earth Sciences 47(6):684–719. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-016-9009-1
Wang Q, Zhang PZ, Freymueller JT, Bilham R, Larson KM, Lai X, You X, Niu Z, Wu J, Li Y, Liu J, Yang Z, Chen Q (2001) Present-day crustal deformation in China constrained by global positioning system measurements. Science 294:574–577
Wang T, Zheng YD, Zhang JJ, Wang XS, Zeng LS, Tong Y (2007) Some problems in the study of Mesozoic extensional structure in the North China Craton and its significance for the study of lithospheric thinning. Geological Bulletin of China 26(9):1154–1166. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1872-5791(07)60044-X
Wang XC, Ding ZF, Zhu LP (2013) Lithosphere structure beneath Tanghai-Shangdu seismic profile. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 56(11):3828–3836
Wang XC, Ding ZF, Zhu LP (2016) Lithospheric structure of the north-eastern north China Craton imaged by S receiver functions. Pure and Applied Geophysics 173:2727–2736
Wang XS, Fang J, Xu HZ, Zheng W (2012) Density structure of the lithosphere beneath North China Craton. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 55(4):1151–1160. https://doi.org/10.6038/j.issn.0001-5733.2012.04.011
Wei WB, Jin S, Ye GF, Deng M, Jing JE (2006) MT sounding and lithosphere thickness in North China. Geology in China 33(4):762–772
Wei WB, Ye GF, Jin S, Deng M, Jing JE, Peng ZQ, Lin X, Song SL, Tang BS, Qu SZ, Chen K, Yang HW, Li GQ (2008) Geoelectric structure of lithosphere beneath eastern North China: features of a thinned lithosphere from magnetotelluric soundings. Earth Science frontiers 15(4):204–216. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1872-5791(08)60055-X
Wei Z, Chen L, Jiang M, Ling Y (2015) Lithospheric structure beneath the central and western North China Craton and the adjacent Qilian orogenic belt from Rayleigh wave dispersion analysis. Tectonophysics 646:130–140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2015.02.008
Wu J, Gao Y, Chen YT (2009) Shear-wave splitting in the crust beneath the southeast Capital area of North China. Journal of Seismology 13:277–286
W
$\ddot{\text{u}}$
stefeld A, Bokelmann G (2007) Null detection in shear-wave splitting measurements. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 97(4):1204–1211
W
$\ddot{\text{u}}$
stefeld A, Bokelmann G, Zaroli C, Barruol G (2008) SplitLab: A shear-wave splitting environment in Matlab. Computers and Geosciences 34(5):515–528
Vinnik LP, Saipekova AM (1984) Structure of the lithosphere and asthenosphere of the Tien Shan. Annales Geophysicae 2(6):621–626
Xu YG (2001) Thermo-tectonic destruction of the Archean lithospheric keel beneath eastern China: evidence, timing and mechanism. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Part A: Solid Earth and Geodesy 26(9–10):747–757
Zhang HF, Sun M, Zhou XH, Fan WM, Zhai MG, Yin JF (2002) Mesozoic lithosphere destruction beneath the North China Craton: evidence from major, trace element, and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope studies of Fangcheng basalts. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology 144(2):241–253
Zhang JL, Tian XB, Zhang HS, Si SK, Zhang ZJ, Teng JW (2012) The crust and upper mantle anisotropy in Baikal Rift Zone and its dynamic significance. Chinese Journal of Geophysics 55(8):2523–2538
Zhang SQ, Karato SI (1995) Lattice preferred orientation of olivine aggregates deformed in simple shear. Nature 375(6534):774–777
Zhao B, Huang Y, Zhang C, Wang W, Tan K, Du R (2015) Crustal deformation on the Chinese mainland during 1998–2014 based on GPS data. Geodesy and Geodynamics 6(1):7–15
Zhao GC, Wilde SA, Cawood PA, Sun M (2001) Archean blocks and their boundaries in the North China Craton: lithological, geochemical, structural and P-T path constraints and tectonic evolution. Precambrian Research 107(1–2):45–73
Zhao L, Zheng TY (2005) Using shear wave splitting measurements to investigate the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the North China Craton: Distinct variation from east to west. Geophysical research letters 32:L10309. https://doi.org/10.1029/2005GL022585
Zhao L, Zheng TY, Chen L (2007) Shear wave splitting in eastern and central China: Implications for upper mantle deformation beneath continental margin. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors 162:73–84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pepi.2007.03.004
Zheng JP, Griffin WL, O’Reilly SY, Yu CM, Zhang HF, Pearson N, Zhang M (2007) Mechanism and timing of lithospheric modification and replacement beneath the eastern North China Craton: Peridotitic xenoliths from the 100 Ma Fuxin basalts and a regional synthesis. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 71(21):5203–5225
Zheng JP, O’Reilly SY, Griffin WL, Lu FX, Zhang M (1998) Nature and evolution of Cenozoic lithospheric beneath Shangdong Peninsula, Sino-Korean Craton, Eastern China. International Geology Review 40:471–499
Zheng SH, Gao Y (1994) Azimuthal anisotropy in lithosphere on the Chinese mainland from observations of SKS at CDSN. Acta Seismologica Sinica 7(2):177–186
Zhu RX, Zheng TY (2009) Destruction geodynamics of the North China Craton and its Paleoproterizoic plate. Chinese Science Bulletin 54:1950–1961. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-009-0451-5

No competing interests reported.

Table1.docx

Download PDF

Version 1

posted

You are reading this latest preprint version

Analyzing the characteristics of the upper mantle anisotropy beneath the northeastern North China Craton based on SKS wave splitting

Status:

Version 1

Abstract

Figures

Highlights

1 Introduction

2 Data and method

3 Results

4 Discussions

4.1Thickness of anisotropic layer

4.2 Cause of anisotropy and its dynamic significance

5 Conclusions

Declarations

References

Additional Declarations

Supplementary Files

Status:

Version 1