Scaled analogue modelling of syn-orogenic, extensional fault systems

据推测，在几个造山带的会聚过程中会发生地壳规模的伸展。这种类型的伸展可能不会导致地壳的净减薄，因此，可能不会发生下盘的均衡驱动抬升。因此，底盘及其折返的几何形状可能不同于纯粹伸展系统的几何形状。第三系阿尔卑斯山伸展系统的边界条件被用来模拟按密度和粘度进行的模拟实验中的同步收缩断层作用。在这些实验中，一个四层造山带将通过不同形状的刚体的压痕来不同地增厚。造山带的流变分层将从一项实验改为另一项实验，以检验强弱地幔对伸展起始和伸展方式的影响。在不同的变形增量下制作的模型的连续横截面将显示同造山伸展系统的三维结构随时间的演化。

Crustal-scale extension is inferred to occur during convergence in several orogens. This type of extension may not lead to a net thinning of the crust and therefore, isostatically-driven uplift of the footwall may not occur. Hence, the geometry of the footwall and its exhumation may differ from those of purely extensional systems. Boundary conditions inferred for the Tertiary Alpine extensional systems are used to simulate syn-contractional faulting in analogue experiments scaled for density and viscosity. During these experiments, a 4-layered orogenic zone will be differentially thickened by indentation of rigid bodies with various shapes. The rheological layering of the orogenic zone will be modified from one experiment one experiment to the other in order to test the effect of a strong vs. weak mantle on the initiation and style of extension. Serial cross sections of the models, made at different increments of deformation, will show the evolution of the 3-D structure of a syn-orogenic extensional system through time.