Relationship between Olivine Fabrics and Seismic Anisotropy in the Yugu Peridotites, Gyeonggi Massif, South Korea

Olivine, a major mineral in the upper mantle with strong intrinsic elastic anisotropy, plays a crucial role in seismic anisotropy in the mantle, primarily through its lattice preferred orientation (LPO). Despite this, the influence of the microstructure of mylonitic rocks on seismic anisotropy remains inadequately understood. Notably, there is a current research gap concerning seismic anisotropy directly inferred from mylonitic peridotite massifs in Korea. In this study, we introduce the deformation microstructure and LPO of olivine in the mantle shear zone. We calculate the characteristics of seismic anisotropy based on the degree of deformation (proto-mylonite, mylonite, ultra-mylonite) and establish correlations between these characteristics. Our findings reveal that the seismic anisotropy resulting from the olivine LPO in the ultra-mylonitic rock appears to be the weakest, whereas the seismic anisotropy resulting from the olivine LPO in the proto-mylonitic rock appears to be the strongest. The results demonstrate a gradual decrease in seismic anisotropy as the fabric strength of olivine LPO diminishes, irrespective of the specific pattern of olivine's LPO. Moreover, all samples exhibit a polarization direction of the fast S-wave aligned subparallel to the lineation. This suggests that seismic anisotropy originating from olivine in mylonitic peridotites is primarily influenced by fabric strength rather than LPO type. Considering these distinctive characteristics of seismic anisotropy is expected to facilitate comparisons and interpretations of the internal mantle structure and seismic data in the Yugu area, Gyeonggi Massif.