Marchenko Green’s Function Retrieval in Layered Elastic Media from Two-Sided Reflection and Transmission Data

Abstract

By solving a Marchenko equation, Green’s functions at an arbitrary (inner) depth level inside an unknown elastic layered medium can be retrieved from single-sided reflection data, which are collected at the top of the medium. To date, it has only been possible to obtain an exact solution if the medium obeyed stringent monotonicity conditions and if all forward-scattered (non-converted and converted) transmissions between the acquisition level and the inner depth level were known a priori. We introduce an alternative Marchenko equation by revising the window operators that are applied in its derivation. We also introduce an auxiliary equation for transmission data, which are collected at the bottom of the medium, and a coupled equation, which is based on both reflection and transmission data. We show that the joint system of the Marchenko equation, the auxiliary equation and the coupled equation can be succesfully inverted when broadband reflection and transmission data are available. This results in a novel methodology for elastodynamic Green’s function retrieval from two-sided data. Apart from these data, our approach requires P- and S-wave transmission times between the inner depth level and the top of the medium, as well as two angle-dependent amplitude scaling factors, which can be estimated from the data by enforcing energy conservation.