Strain Localized Deformation Variation of a Small-Scale Ductile Shear Zone

A continental-scale strike-slip shear zone frequently presents a long-lasting deformation and physical expression of strain localization in a middle to lower crustal level.However,the deformation evolution of strain localization at a small-scale remains unclear.This study investigated<10 cm wide shear zones developing in undeformed granodiorites exposed at the boundary of the continental-scale Gaoligong strike-slip shear zone.The small-scale ductile shear zones exhibit a typical transition from protomylonite,mylonite to extremely deformed ultramylonite,and decreasing mineral size from coarse-grained aggregates to extremely fine-grained mixed phases.Shearing sense indicators such as hornblende and feldspar porphyroclasts in the shear zone are the more significantly low-strain zone of mylonite.The microstructure and EBSD results revealed that the small-scale shear zone experienced ductile deformation under medium-high temperature conditions.Quartz aggregates suggested a consistent temperature with an irregular feature,exhibiting a dominated high-temperature prism <a> slip system.Additionally,coarse-grained aggregates in the mylonite of the shear zone were deformed predominantly by dislocation creep,while ultra-plastic flow by viscous grain boundary sliding was an essential deformation process in the extremely fine-grained(~50μm)mixed-phases in the ultramylonite.Microstructural-derived strain rates calculated from quartz paleopiezometry were on the order of 10^(-15) to 10^(-13) s^(-1)from low-strain mylonite to high strained ultramylonite.The localization and strain ratelimited process was fluid-assisted precipitation presenting transitions of compositions as hydrous retrogression of hornblende to mica during increasing deformation and exhumation.Furthermore,the potential occurrence of the small-scale shear zone was initiated at a middle-deep crust seated crustal condition dominated by the temperature-controlled formation and rheological weakening.