Davemaoite Elasticity Reveals Slab‐Induced Heterogeneity in the Mantle Transition Zone

Abstract The observed 2%–7% low‐shear velocity ( V S ) anomalies near the subducted slab at the bottom mantle transition zone (MTZ) indicate strong lateral heterogeneity, which is commonly attributed to subducted oceanic crust. However, davemaoite, a major constituent of the subducted oceanic crust, has been poorly constrained in its elasticity, hindering accurate velocity modeling and obscuring the origin of these low‐velocity features. Here we report single‐crystal elasticity of Ti‐bearing davemaoite with the composition of Ca(Si 0.57 Ti 0.43 )O 3 under high pressure‐temperature and found that Ti incorporation significantly reduces velocities and alters the pressure dependence of the shear modulus. Further velocity modeling demonstrated that subducted crusts with varying Ti content have seismic signatures of 1.7(2)–6.8(5)% low‐ V S at the bottom MTZ, consistent with the observed low‐ V S structure in the region. These findings highlight the role of slab‐derived chemical heterogeneity in generating mantle seismic anomalies and provide new experimental constraints on the structure and dynamics of the deep Earth.

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Publication Details

Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
Published
2026-01-13
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025gl118147
Primary Topic
High-pressure geophysics and materials
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Davemaoite Elasticity Reveals Slab‐Induced Heterogeneity in the Mantle Transition Zone

Yingzhan Wei, Dongzhou Zhang, Yingxin Yu, Cheng Qian et al.
Geophysical Research Letters
High-pressure geophysics and materials
article

Davemaoite Elasticity Reveals Slab‐Induced Heterogeneity in the Mantle Transition Zone

Yingzhan Wei, Dongzhou Zhang, Yingxin Yu, Cheng Qian, Li Luo, Chaoshuai Zhao, T. Ishii, Zhu Mao, Yuzhu Wang, Ningyu Sun, Jing Li, Xinyue Zhang
article en

Abstract

Abstract The observed 2%–7% low‐shear velocity ( V S ) anomalies near the subducted slab at the bottom mantle transition zone (MTZ) indicate strong lateral heterogeneity, which is commonly attributed to subducted oceanic crust. However, davemaoite, a major constituent of the subducted oceanic crust, has been poorly constrained in its elasticity, hindering accurate velocity modeling and obscuring the origin of these low‐velocity features. Here we report single‐crystal elasticity of Ti‐bearing davemaoite with the composition of Ca(Si 0.57 Ti 0.43 )O 3 under high pressure‐temperature and found that Ti incorporation significantly reduces velocities and alters the pressure dependence of the shear modulus. Further velocity modeling demonstrated that subducted crusts with varying Ti content have seismic signatures of 1.7(2)–6.8(5)% low‐ V S at the bottom MTZ, consistent with the observed low‐ V S structure in the region. These findings highlight the role of slab‐derived chemical heterogeneity in generating mantle seismic anomalies and provide new experimental constraints on the structure and dynamics of the deep Earth.

Geophysical Research LettersVol. 53(2)
University of Science and Technology of China (CN), Argonne National Laboratory (US), Okayama University (JP), Jilin University (CN), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), China University of Geosciences (CN), Shanghai Advanced Research Institute (CN)
National Science Foundation, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 93%
High-pressure geophysics and materials
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