Effective Reflection Coefficients for Curved Interfaces in TI Media

We introduce so-called “effective” reflection coefficients (ERC) for curved interfaces in transversely isotropic media. If the reflector is plane, ERC describe the exact reflected wavefield for the full range of incidence angles, while plane-wave reflection coefficients become inadequate at near-critical and post-critical angles. For curved reflectors, ERC provide a practical way of computing the wavefield without using such time-consuming methods as finite differences. We analyze parameter dependence of ERC and evaluate the potential of using them in amplitude-versus-offset inversion and Kirchhoff-type modeling.