The upper mantle anisotropy in Yunnan area, China

Abstract

Shear wave phase SKS of 11 earthquakes, collected from 23 stations of Yunnan Digital Seismic Network, is analyzed by fitting the theoretical transverse component with the observed one for determining the orientation and extent of polarization seismic anisotropy of upper mantle. Shear wave splitting is obviously observed in all stations except Heqing station (HQ). The results show that the polarization of fast split S-wave of upper mantle in Yunnan area is north-northeast in general and the time delay between fast and slow split shear waves is 0.5–2.0 s. It suggests that the influence of faults upon anisotropy analysis could not be neglected in such a geologically complex area. As the transitional zone between Qinghai-Tibetan plateau and the block of southern China, in Yunnan area the orientation of fast shear wave polarization indicating the subduction of Indian plate into Eurasian plate is the fundamental background of earth dynamics. While the southeast or south-southeast movement of Sichuan-Yunnan rhomb block, formed by the uplift of Qinghai-Tibetan plateau, plays an important role in the composition of complicated structural and stress environment of Yunnan area. The divergence between the fast direction and the movement of upper mantle indicates in Yunnan area there exists complex coupling effect between lower velocity layer or asthenosphere and crustal block. The distribution of structure driving force looks like a palm extending to northeast. According to the time delay between fast and slow shear waves, it is deduced that the thickness of anisotropy layer is 60–225 km with variation range roughly equal to that of 104–260 km of the buried depth of lower velocity layer of the earth in Yunnan area. So it suggests the top of anisotropy zone starts from the bottom of crust or from the lower velocity layer varying with specific locations related to the tremendous variation of the Moho discontinuity in Yunnan area. Furthermore, it is deduced that the anisotropy of the upper mantle is mainly from the lithosphere rather than the whole upper mantle.