2D wave-equation migration by joint finite element method and finite difference method

Xiang Du, Yuan Dong, John C. Bancroft

A new method of migration using the finite element method (FEM) and the finite difference method (FDM) is jointly used in the spatial domain. It has been applied to solve a time relay 2D wave equation. By using the semi-discretization technique of FEM in the spatial domain, the origin problem can be written as a coupled system of lower dimensions partial differential equations (PDEs) that continuously depend upon time and space. FDM is used to solve these PDEs. The concept and theory of this method are also discussed in this paper. Two numerical examples of 2D wave-equation migration show the successful result and its potential application.