Multiparameter Inversion: Cramer's Rule for Pseudodifferential Operators

Abstract

Linearized multiparameter inversion is a model-driven variant of amplitude-versus-offset analysis, which seeks to separately account for the influences of several model parameters on the seismic response. Previous approaches to this class of problems have included geometric optics-based (Kirchhoff, GRT) inversion and iterative methods suitable for large linear systems. In this paper, we suggest an approach based on the mathematical nature of the normal operator of linearized inversion—it is a scaling operator in phase space—and on a very old idea from linear algebra, namely, Cramer's rule for computing the inverse of a matrix. The approximate solution of the linearized multiparameter problem so produced involves no ray theory computations. It may be sufficiently accurate for some purposes; for others, it can serve as a preconditioner to enhance the convergence of standard iterative methods.