@article{14734,
  author = {Jiyang Ye and Mian Liu and Hui Wang},
  title = {A numerical study of strike-slip bend formation with application to the Salton Sea pull-apart basin},
  abstract = {How stepovers of strike-slip faults connect to form bends is a question important for understanding the formation of push-up ranges (restraining bends) and pull-apart basins (releasing bends). We investigated the basic mechanics of this process in a simple three-dimensional viscoelastoplastic finite element model. Our model predicts localized plastic strain within stepovers that may eventually lead to the formation of strike-slip bends. Major parameters controlling strain localization include the relative fault strength, geometry of the fault system, and the plasticity model assumed. Using the Drucker-Prager plasticity model, in which the plastic yield strength of the crust depends on both shear and normal stresses, our results show that a releasing bend is easier to develop than a restraining bend under similar conditions. These results may help explain the formation of the Salton Sea pull-apart basin in Southern California 0.5{\textendash}0.1 Ma ago, when the stepover between the Imperial Fault and the San Andreas Fault was connected by the Brawley seismic zone.},
  year = {2015},
  journal = {Geophysical Research Letters},
  pages = {1368 - 1374},
  month = {Apr-03-2016},
  publisher = {AGU},
  url = {http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/2015GL063180},
  doi = {10.1002/2015GL063180},
}