Research

I take part of the Global Seismology team at Université de Lyon, and the Seismology and Mathematical Geophysics group at the Australian National University.

My research activity consists in seismically imaging the deep Earth interior, from the lithosphere to the lower mantle, relating observed seismic heterogeneities to what we know about mineral physics, geodynamics and geochemistry.

I have a focus on seismic discontinuities in the transition zone (i.e. 400-700 km depth), but also the crust, the lithosphere and subducted plates in the mantle.

My seismological tools are body-waves reflected (PP-, SS-precursors) and converted (P-S and S-P receiver functions) at discontinuities recorded at global permanent seismic networks and dense regional temporary arrays.

The recent impact of the 15 Feb 2013 meteor in the region of Chelyabinsk, Ural, also provided an interesting exercise of classical seismology. Due to the rarity of such an event (1 per century), its observation provided unusual constraints on the physics of meteoroid collision (Tauzin et al., 2013). I plan to further develop the study of such events on Earth, as they might be interesting analogue experiments for meteor impact surveys on Mars.

Mars InSight

The Chelyabinsk Meteor

B. Tauzin, E. Debayle, C. Quantin and N. Coltice (2013), Seismo-acoustic coupling induced by the breakup of the 15 Feb 2013 Chelyabinsk Meteor, Geophys. Res. Lett., in press.

The Mantle Transition Zone

See the NoLiMit project.

Subduction Zones: Structure and Processes

Tauzin, B., Kim, S., & Afonso, J. C. (2018). Multiple phase changes in the mantle transition zone beneath northeast Asia: Constraints from teleseismic reflected and converted body waves. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 123(8), 6636-6657.

Tauzin, B., Kim, S., & Kennett, B. L. N. (2017). Pervasive seismic low-velocity zones within stagnant plates in the mantle transition zone: Thermal or compositional origin?. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 477, 1-13.

Tauzin, B., Reynard, B., Perrillat, J. P., Debayle, E., & Bodin, T. (2017). Deep crustal fracture zones control fluid escape and the seismic cycle in the Cascadia subduction zone. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 460, 1-11.

Tauzin, B., Bodin, T., Debayle, E., Perrillat, J. P., & Reynard, B. (2016). Multi-mode conversion imaging of the subducted Gorda and Juan de Fuca plates below the North American continent. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 440, 135-146.

Tauzin, B., Van Der Hilst, R. D., Wittlinger, G., & Ricard, Y. (2013). Multiple transition zone seismic discontinuities and low velocity layers below western United States. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 118(5), 2307-2322.