SEISMIC RAY TRACING USING LINEAR TRAVEL-TIME INTERPOLATION

A new ray-tracing method called linear traveltime interpolation (LTI) is proposed. This method computes traveltimes and raypaths in a 2D velocity structure more rapidly and accurately than other conventional methods. The LTI method is formulated for a 2D cell model, and calculations of traveltimes and raypaths are carried out only on cell boundaries. Therefore a raypath is considered to be always straight in a cell with uniform velocity. This approach is suitable to tomography analysis. The algorithm of LTI consists of two separate steps: step 1 calculates traveltimes on all cell boundaries; step 2 traces raypaths for all pairs of receivers and the shot. A traveltime at an arbitrary point on a cell boundary is assumed to be linearly interpolated between traveltimes at the adjacent discrete points at which we calculate traveltimes. Fermat's principle is used as the criterion for choosing the correct traveltimes and raypaths from several candidates routinely. The LTI method has been compared numerically with the shooting method and the finite-difference method (FDM) of the eikonal equation. The results show that the LTI method has great advantages of high speed and high accuracy in the calculation of both traveltimes and raypaths. The LTI method can be regarded as an advanced version of the conventional FDM of the eikonal equation because the formulae of FDM are independently derived from LTI. In the process of derivation, it is shown theoretically that LTI is more accurate than FDM. Moreover in the LTI method, we can avoid the numerical instability that occurs in Vidale's method where the velocity changes abruptly.