Local-scale phase velocity estimation using ambient seismic noise: comparison between passive seismic interferometry and conventional frequency–wavenumber methods

Abstract

Summary We present a new processing scheme that employs passive seismic interferometry followed by multichannel analysis of surface waves, which we call the 2D PSI-MASW method, to obtain Rayleigh wave phase velocity dispersion (PVD) information. In this scheme, we first use the principles of passive seismic interferometry to form multi-directional cross-correlations (CCs) then project the CCs onto a 1-D virtual array and apply the phase-shift transform as in MASW processing. We compare PVD information obtained by this method with those of the conventional beam-power based frequency–wavenumber decomposition (CVFK) method using ambient seismic noise (ASN) data collected by local-scale 2-dimensional (2D) arrays deployed at three selected sites in Bursa, Turkey. By analysing the ASN data from these sites, we show that similar multi-modal PVD curves can be obtained with the two methods over a broad frequency range (∼2-23 Hz) within the wavenumber resolution and aliasing limits. However, in one of our sites where the 2D array configuration has a considerable anti-symmetry, we show that the 1D virtual array used in the 2D PSI-MASW method has a better array response function in terms of wavenumber resolution and suppression of side-lobes leading to superior mode resolution and separation than that of the CVFK method, which shows strong directional variations. Furthermore, unlike the CVFK method, the 2D PSI-MASW method takes advantage of temporal stacking of CCs ensuring weak but coherent Rayleigh wave signals present in the ASN wavefield to be strengthened and has the potential for better extraction of PVD information. We conclude that by using a 2D array with spatial coverage providing a wide range of directions and distances, reliable PVD information can be obtained even if the ASN sources are not concentrated in the stationary phase zones. Thus, we suggest that the 2D PSI-MASW method is highly advantageous for the extraction of reliable PVD information owing to the multi-directional CCs provided by the 2D array configurations. We also report that using only a single receiver line in the interferometric approach results in biased and/or incomplete PVD information due to the non-isotropic ASN source distribution at all three sites we analysed. In conclusion, our results clearly indicate that the 2D PSI-MASW method can be used as complementary or alternative to the CVFK method to extract multi-modal Rayleigh wave PVD information in local-scale seismological studies.