Reconstructed Wavefield Imaging

We propose and implement a novel imaging method, which is referred to as reconstructed wavefield imaging (RWI). The idea of RWI is to solve a partial differential equation (PDE) constrained optimization problem for reconstructing a more reliable source wavefield that satisfies the two-way wave equation and also best fits the recorded data at the receiver locations. By applying the proposed reconstructed wavefield method in the time domain in conjunction with the cross-correlation imaging condition, RWI would generate higher-resolution images with improved focusing and balanced amplitude, compared to conventional reverse time migration (RTM). The method is also capable of removing migration artifacts resulting from RTM. It demonstrates more advantages for subsalt imaging or in other areas with sharp velocity contrasts. The applicability and benefits of RWI will be illustrated on both synthetic and field examples.