Himalayan Geology, Vol. 44 (1), 2023, pp. 106-116, Printed in India
P-receiver function technique
CHINMAY HALDAR, KALACHAND SAIN*
Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, 33 GMS Road, Dehradun-248001, India
*Email (Corresponding author): kalachandsain7@gmail.com
Abstract: This paper illustrates the P-receiver function (PRF) technique, commonly known as the converted wave technique, utilized to delineate the earth's subsurface structure. Different seismic discontinuities inside the earth are mainly the crust-mantle boundary (Moho), the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB), and the upper mantle discontinuities (410 and 660 km), which are characterized by an abrupt jump in seismic density and velocity. These discontinuities give a clue about the geodynamic evolution of the earth. The PRF technique has survived for more than forty years and has been a very useful method to estimate these boundaries below a seismic station. The computational steps of PRF technique are described here with different mathematical and observational examples. The PRF technique uses seismic waves generated by an earthquake and recorded at the teleseismic distance. The recorded teleseismic waveforms (seismogram), which contain source signatures, propagation path effect, and local structure beneath the station, are used to compute the PRF. The advantage of PRF is that if there is no seismic network, one can estimate the earth's interior structure by analyzing the waveforms recorded only at a single station. The PRF technique can also apply to an array and network data to estimate the detailed information of the crust and upper mantle. The structure of the earth's discontinuity can be delineated by using the waveform conversion of both phases, i.e., P-to-S (PS), and S-to-P (SP).
Keywords : Receiver Function, Converted Wave, Teleseismic, Earthquake, Inversion
