The relationship between scattering theory and the reflection coefficient for elastic media: forward scattering series

Ali Fathalian, Kristopher A. Innanen

The scattering theory can be used as a powerful theoretic approach to understand and process seismic data. Exploring inverse scattering series, which have been used to remove multiples from seismic data, depends on understanding how these series generate primaries and multiples. The inverse scattering methods depend on an understanding of how the forward scattering series generates primaries and multiples. In this work, we study the forward scattering series for elastic media in order to identify on which terms in inverse scattering series are important for imaging and inversion. Primary reflections are described by all of the terms in the series excluding the first term.