Fabric and Elastic Properties of Antigorite, Mica and Amphibole-Rich Rocks and Implications for the Tectonic Interprétation of Seismic Anisotropy

The knowledge of seismic and elastic properties of polycrystalline rocks, which are representative of rocks currently being deformed at depth, under high pressure and temperature conditions is fundamental for geological interpretation of in-situ seismic data (e.g., reflections, refractions, received functions, tomography, and shear-wave splitting) and for establishing lithospheric structure and composition models. Through seismic properties measurements by directing high frequency waves at oriented rock samples and calculations from the crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) measurements of minerals in polished rock samples using electron backscatter diffusion (EBSD) techniques, this thesis aims to better understand how the seismic and elastic properties [e.g., compressional and shear-wave velocities (Vp and Vs),anisotropy, and elastic moduli] of main rocks under confining pressure are influenced by their chemical and modal compositions, microstructures (e.g., foliation and lineation), and CPO of anisotropic minerals, and to interpret in situ seismic data observed in Tibetan Plateau and oceanic subduction zone using these data.