Structure and deformational character of strike-slip fault zones

Strike-slip fault zones observed either in the field or in model experiments generally consist of several subparallel faults which make these zones complicated in geometry and kinematics. The geometry of a strike-slip fault or shear zone is dependent on arrangement (pinnate or en echelon), on step (left step or right step), and on the rank )smaller faults within larger faults) of the subparallel fault. The relations and interactions of these three factors create a variety of dynamic circumstances and tectonic settings within the strike-slip fault zones. These include pull-aparts in the release area between subparallel faults, push-ups in the jogs where the subparallel faults overlap, and pivotal movements, or rotation, of single faults along the whole fault zone. Each kind of tectonic setting is in itself characteristic, each setting consists of many subtypes, which are controlled chiefly by the geometric parameters of the subparallel faults. One of the most important phenomena revealed in the field work is two different kinds of evolution of strike-slip fault zones: one is the evolution of a zone with a tensile component, which is related to the growth of rock bridges, and the other, of one with a compressional component, which develops by the destruction of rock bridges. In this paper we discuss, on the basis of recent research on four strike-slip fault zones in China, the essential characteristics of strike-slip faults and the possible causes of the observed structural phenomena. Attention is focussed on the deformation, development, and distribution of horizontal displacements within strike-slip fault zones.