Magnetic fabric of granite plutons: from anisotropy to processes

Since the advent of the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) method, magnetic fabric has become a widely used tool to unravel the internal architecture of granite plutons, with an impressive boom of AMS studies in the 1990s and 2000s. This "boom period" generated a large body of data and led to significant advances in our understanding of how the structural inventory of plutons records magma flow, emplacement, and regional deformation. On top of that, the AMS is capable of revealing an incredible level of detail, especially in combination with mathematical modeling, as to the type, kinematics, and intensity of finite strain. One of the most intriguing discoveries is the key role of AMS in decrypting multiple fabrics that may reflect heterogeneous superposition of intrusive processes by tectonic deformation. Despite a recent decline of interest in the AMS studies, a number of exciting issues still remain to be explored, namely how to use the magnetic anisotropy to interpret the spatio-temporal melt evolution in "fossil" magma chambers and its potential in recording the past motion of lithospheric plates.