@article {esser2016tvr,
	title = {Total-variation regularization strategies in full-waveform inversion},
	journal = {SIAM Journal on Imaging Sciences},
	volume = {11},
	number = {1},
	year = {2018},
	note = {(SIAM Journal on Imaging Sciences)},
	pages = {376-406},
	abstract = {We propose an extended full-waveform inversion formulation that includes general convex constraints on the model. Though the full problem is highly nonconvex, the overarching optimization scheme arrives at geologically plausible results by solving a sequence of relaxed and warm-started constrained convex subproblems. The combination of box, total-variation, and successively relaxed asymmetric total-variation constraints allows us to steer free from parasitic local minima while keeping the estimated physical parameters laterally continuous and in a physically realistic range. For accurate starting models, numerical experiments carried out on the challenging 2004 BP velocity benchmark demonstrate that bound and total-variation constraints improve the inversion result significantly by removing inversion artifacts, related to source encoding, and by clearly improved delineation of top, bottom, and flanks of a high-velocity high-contrast salt inclusion. The experiments also show that for poor starting models these two constraints by themselves are insufficient to detect the bottom of high-velocity inclusions such as salt. Inclusion of the one-sided asymmetric total-variation constraint overcomes this issue by discouraging velocity lows to buildup during the early stages of the inversion. To the author{\textquoteright}s knowledge the presented algorithm is the first to successfully remove the imprint of local minima caused by poor starting models and band-width limited finite aperture data.},
	keywords = {constrained optimization, Full-waveform inversion, hinge loss, salt, total variation},
	doi = {10.1137/17M111328X},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Journals/SIAMJournalOnImagingSciences/2018/esser2016tvr/esser2016tvr.pdf},
	url2 = {https://doi.org/10.1137/17M111328X},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Tristan van Leeuwen and Aleksandr Y. Aravkin and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@conference {louboutin2017EAGEdns,
	title = {Data normalization strategies for full-waveform inversion},
	booktitle = {EAGE Annual Conference Proceedings},
	year = {2017},
	note = {(EAGE, Paris)},
	month = {06},
	abstract = {Amplitude mismatch is an inherent problem in seismic inversion. Most of the source estimation techniques are associated with amplitude uncertainty due to incomplete representation of the physics or estimation method parameters. Rewriting the inversion problem in an amplitude free formulation allows to mitigate the amplitude ambiguity and help the inversion process to converge. We present in this work two different strategies to lessen amplitude effects in seismic inversion, derive the corresponding update directions and show how we handle scaling error correctly in both the objective function and the gradient.},
	keywords = {EAGE, FWI, inversion, nonlinear, normalization},
	doi = {10.3997/2214-4609.201700720},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/EAGE/2017/louboutin2017EAGEdns/louboutin2017EAGEdns.html},
	presentation = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/EAGE/2017/louboutin2017EAGEdns/louboutin2017EAGEdns_poster.pdf},
	author = {Mathias Louboutin and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@article {esser2016TLEcwi,
	title = {Constrained waveform inversion for automatic salt flooding},
	journal = {The Leading Edge},
	volume = {35},
	number = {3},
	year = {2016},
	note = {(The Leading Edge)},
	month = {03},
	pages = {235-239},
	abstract = {Given appropriate data acquisition, processing to remove nonprimary arrivals, and use of an accurate migration algorithm, it is the quality of the subsurface velocity model that typically controls the quality of imaging that can be obtained from salt-affected seismic data. Full-waveform inversion has the potential to improve the accuracy, resolution, repeatability, and speed with which such velocity models can be generated, but, in the absence of an accurate starting model, that potential is difficult to realize in practice. Presented are successful inversion results, obtained from synthetic subsalt models, using a robust full-waveform inversion code that includes constraints upon the set of allowable earth models. These constraints include limitations on the total variation of the velocity of the model and, most significantly, on the asymmetric variation of velocity with depth such that negative velocity excursions are limited. During the iteration, these constraints are relaxed progressively so that the final model is driven principally by the seismic data, but the constraints act to steer the inversion path away from local minima in its early stages. This methodology is applied to portions of the 2004 BP benchmark and Phase I SEAM salt models, recovering an accurate model of the salt body, including its base and flanks, and an accurate model of the subsalt velocity structure, starting from one-dimensional velocity models that are severely cycle skipped. This approach removes entirely the requirement to pick salt boundaries from migrated seismic data, and acts as a form of automatic salt and sediment flooding during full-waveform inversion.},
	keywords = {FWI, high-contrast and high velocity, salt, total-variation minimization, velocity-model building},
	doi = {10.1190/tle35030235.1},
	url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1190/tle35030235.1},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Felix J. Herrmann and Mike Warner}
}
@presentation {esser2015SINBADFasd,
	title = {Automatic salt delineation {\textemdash} Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion with convex constraints},
	year = {2015},
	publisher = {SINBAD},
	abstract = {We extend full-waveform inversion by Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion by including convex constraints on the model. Contrary to the conventional adjoint-state formulations, Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion has the advantage that the Gauss-Newton Hessian is well approximated by a diagonal scaling, which allows us to add convex constraints, such as the box- and the edge-preserving total-variation constraint, on the square slowness without incurring significant increases in computational costs. As the examples demonstrate, including these constraints yields far superior results in complex geological areas that contain high-velocity high-contrast bodies (e.g. salt or basalt). Without these convex constraints, adjoint-state and Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion get trapped in local minima for poor starting models.},
	keywords = {Presentation, SINBAD, SINBADFALL2015, SLIM},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SINBAD/2015/Fall/esser2015SINBADFasd/esser2015SINBADFasd.pdf},
	url2 = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SINBAD/2015/Fall/esser2015SINBADFasd/esser2015SINBADFasd.mov},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@conference {esser2015SEGasd,
	title = {Automatic salt delineation {\textendash}- Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion with convex constraints},
	booktitle = {SEG Technical Program Expanded Abstracts},
	year = {2015},
	note = {(SEG, New Orleans)},
	month = {10},
	pages = {1337-1343},
	abstract = {We extend full-waveform inversion by Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion by including convex constraints on the model. Contrary to the conventional adjoint-state formulations, Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion has the advantage that the Gauss-Newton Hessian is well approximated by a diagonal scaling, which allows us to add convex constraints, such as the box- and the edge-preserving total-variation constraint, on the square slowness without incurring significant increases in computational costs. As the examples demonstrate, including these constraints yields far superior results in complex geological areas that contain high-velocity high-contrast bodies (e.g. salt or basalt). Without these convex constraints, adjoint-state and Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion get trapped in local minima for poor starting models.},
	keywords = {convex constraints, Full-waveform inversion, salt, SEG, total-variation norm},
	doi = {10.1190/segam2015-5877995.1},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SEG/2015/esser2015SEGasd/esser2015SEGasd.html},
	presentation = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SEG/2015/esser2015SEGasd/esser2015SEGasd_pres.pdf},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Tristan van Leeuwen and Aleksandr Y. Aravkin and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@presentation {esser2015SINBADasd,
	title = {Automatic salt delineation {\textemdash} Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion with convex constraints},
	year = {2015},
	note = {posthumously presented by Felix J. Herrmann},
	publisher = {SINBAD},
	abstract = {We extend full-waveform inversion by Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion by including convex constraints on the model. Contrary to the conventional adjoint-state formulations, Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion has the advantage that the Gauss-Newton Hessian is well approximated by a diagonal scaling, which allows us to add convex constraints, such as the box- and the edge-preserving total-variation constraint, on the square slowness without incurring significant increases in computational costs. As the examples demonstrate, including these constraints yields far superior results in complex geological areas that contain high-velocity high-contrast bodies (e.g. salt or basalt). Without these convex constraints, adjoint-state and Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion get trapped in local minima for poor starting models.},
	keywords = {Presentation, SINBAD, SINBADSPRING2015, SLIM},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SINBAD/2015/Spring/esser2015SINBADasd/esser2015SINBADasd.pdf},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@conference {esser2015SEGWSasf,
	title = {Automatic salt flooding with hinged FWI},
	booktitle = {SEG Workshop on Subsalt model buiding long to short wavelengths; New Orleans},
	year = {2015},
	note = {(SEG, New Orleans)},
	month = {10},
	keywords = {SEG, waveform inversion, workshop},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SEG/2015/esser2015SEGWSasf/esser2015SEGWSasf_pres.pdf},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@techreport {esser2015tvwri,
	title = {Total variation regularization strategies in full waveform inversion for improving robustness to noise, limited data and poor initializations},
	number = {TR-EOAS-2015-5},
	year = {2015},
	month = {06},
	institution = {UBC},
	abstract = {We propose an extended full waveform inversion formulation that includes convex constraints on the model. In particular, we show how to simultaneously constrain the total variation of the slowness squared while enforcing bound constraints to keep it within a physically realistic range. Synthetic experiments show that including total variation regularization can improve the recovery of a high velocity perturbation to a smooth background model, removing artifacts caused by noise and limited data. Total variation-like constraints can make the inversion results significantly more robust to a poor initial model, leading to reasonable results in some cases where unconstrained variants of the method completely fail. Numerical results are presented for portions of the SEG/EAGE salt model and the 2004 BP velocity benchmark. ***Disclaimer.*** *This technical report is ongoing work (and posted as is except for the addition of another author) of the late John "Ernie" Esser (May 19, 1980 - March 8, 2015), who passed away under tragic circumstances. We will work hard to finalize and submit this work to the peer-review literature.* Felix J. Herrmann},
	keywords = {cones constraints, hinge loss, total-variation, Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/TechReport/2015/esser2015tvwri/esser2015tvwri.html},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Tristan van Leeuwen and Aleksandr Y. Aravkin and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
@conference {herrmann2015IIPFWIwcc,
	title = {Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion with convex constraints},
	booktitle = {Inaugural Full-Waveform Inversion Workshop},
	year = {2015},
	note = {(Natal, Brazil)},
	month = {08-09},
	abstract = {During this talk, we discuss how to exploit the special structure of Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion (WRI) to include convex bound and total-variation constraints in a computationally feasible manner. The resulting method shows promising results on challenging models that include high-velocity high-contrast inclusions such as salt or basalt. This is joint work with Ernie Esser who passed away and who is dearly missed.},
	keywords = {convex, FWI, regularization},
	presentation = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/IIPFWI/herrmann2015IIPFWIwcc/herrmann2015IIPFWIwcc_pres.pdf},
	author = {Felix J. Herrmann and Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch}
}
@presentation {esser2014SINBADtvc,
	title = {Total variation constrained full waveform inversion with continuation},
	year = {2014},
	publisher = {SINBAD},
	abstract = {Adding a total variation constraint to the Wavefield Reconstruction Inversion model proposed by van Leeuwen and Herrmann can improve robustness and remove artifacts by encouraging piecewise smooth solutions. However, if the parameter controlling the strength of the TV regularization is not well chosen, important details can be lost. We investigate continuation strategies that gradually reduce the strength of the TV constraint so that these important details are eventually allowed back into the solution. Preliminary numerical experiments suggest that this can improve the solution path and lead to better velocity models than if TV regularization were not used during the intermediate steps.},
	keywords = {Presentation, SINBAD, SINBADFALL2014, SLIM},
	url = {https://slim.gatech.edu/Publications/Public/Conferences/SINBAD/2014/Fall/esser2014SINBADtvc/esser2014SINBADtvc.pdf},
	author = {Ernie Esser and Llu{\'\i}s Guasch and Tristan van Leeuwen and Aleksandr Y. Aravkin and Felix J. Herrmann}
}
