Petrology of Metamorphic Rocks

Petrology of metamorphic rocks focuses on investigations of the composition, microstructure, and texture of crystalline rocks that had experienced chemical, mineralogical or microstructural changes at elevated pressure and temperature conditions. Processes of new formation and recrystallization of mineral phases from initially sedimentary, igneous or already metamorphic rocks leave hints to the evolution of rocks in time and the ambient conditions during rock transformation.
A research topic, for example, is the investigation of the polymetamorphic evolution of crystalline basement units in the Alpine orogen and the Bohemian Massif. One focus area is the tectono-metamorphic evolution of Austroalpine crystalline basement units affected by Carboniferous, Permian-Triassic and Cretaceous metamorphism at different metamorphic grades. Also, we conduct petrological research on granulite samples from localities worldwide, aiming to enhance understanding of the preservation and modification of high-grade mineral phase relationships.
We investigate the mechanisms of chemical equilibration and the formation of microstructures and textures with special focus to the relationships between mineral inclusions and their host crystal and the interactions between chemical reactions and rock deformation. We explore the formation and evolution of reaction microstructures by correlating the crystal orientations of mineral phases with the geometric arrangement of grain and phase boundaries. The interactions of neighbor crystals at their interfaces yield fundamental information on the behavior of mineral phases during metamorphism.
Deciphering the petrogenetic history of metamorphic rocks helps to better understand the effective mechanisms during rock transformation, and to build and test geodynamic models of the evolution of orogens. The polymetamorphic nature of the studied rocks requires fundamental understanding of the interplay between the chemical equilibration of major and trace elements and deformation. In this context, close links exist with structural geology, mineralogy and geochronology.