Unraveling the deformational history of faults from AMS

The faults chosen for this study belong to the Iberian Chain (Northeastern Iberian Plate) and include two kinematically different kinds of structures (thrusts and strike-slip), with well-developed fault gouges several tens or hundreds of meters thick (Datos Fault System and Daroca Fault) and thinner clayey layers linked to thrust surfaces (Cameros-Demanda Thrust). The Cameros-Demanda Thrust has a relatively simple history of Mesozoic extension and Tertiary inversion. Along the thrust several areas with fault rocks include weakly oriented breccias, deformed conglomerates and clayey fault gouge with S/C structures. The Datos and Daroca faults show a more complex history of movement and are of key importance in the Variscan and Alpine evolution of the Iberian microplate. They show fault rocks with thickness of up to hundreds of meters, consisting of fault gouges, microbreccias and fault breccias with large blocks of stratified Paleozoic and Mesozoic blocks.