Fault mirrors of seismically active faults: A fossil of small earthquakes at shallow depths

Many faults are decorated with naturally polished and glossy surfaces named fault mirrors (FMs) formed during slips. The characterization of FMs is of paramount importance to investigate physico-chemical processes controlling dynamic fault mechanics during earthquakes. Here we present detailed microstructural and mineralogical observations of the FMs from borehole cores of seismically active faults. The borehole cores were recovered from 600 to 800 m depth located in the hanging wall of the Hsiaotungshi fault in Taiwan which ruptured during 1935 Mw7.1 Hsinchu-Taichung earthquake. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of FMs show that two distinct textural domains, fault gouge and coated materials (nanograins, melt patchs, and graphite), were cut by a well-defined boundary. Melt patches and graphite, determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission electron microscope (TEM), and SEM-EDS analysis, were found to be distributed heterogeneously on the slip surfaces. On the basis of the current kinematic cross section of the Hsiaotungshi fault, all the FMs were exhumed less than 5 km, where ambient temperatures are less than 150°C. It seems that the amorphous materials on the FMs were generated by seismic slips. The sintering nanograins coating the slip surfaces was also suggested to be produced at high slip rates from both natural observation and recent rock deformation experiments. In addition, graphite could be produced by seismic slips and lubricate the fault based on the rock deformation experiments. Our observation suggests that the FMs were composed of several indicators of coseismic events (melt patches, sintering nanograins, and graphite) corresponding to small thermal perturbation generated by seismic slips. Although the contribution of these coseismic indicators on frictional behavior remains largely unknown, it suggests that multiple dynamic weakening mechanisms such as flash heating, powder lubrication and graphitization may be involved during coseismic events. Considering the heterogeneous distribution of melt patches and graphite and plausibly associated low thermal perturbation, it was presumably suggested that the FMs were generated by the asperities on the fault surfaces at seismic rates in a short displacement. That is, the FMs might be considered as the fossil of small earthquakes.