• 2023 - Researcher, AIST, Japan
• 2012 - 2023 Researcher, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
• 2017 - 2023 Researcher, OYO Corporation, Japan
• 2012 Researcher, Kyoto University

My research focuses on geophysical methods for high-resolution subsurface imaging, with particular emphasis on seismic waveform analysis and Full Waveform Inversion (FWI). My work addresses the quantitative characterization of fractures and faults, as well as subsurface structures influenced by fluid flow. My research background is strongly grounded in theoretical and numerical wave physics, complemented by extensive experience in seismic data analysis. I have developed seismic-based methodologies to estimate fracture compliance and aperture, contributing to advances in seismic tomography and inverse problems. I am also engaged in the development of practical seismic monitoring approaches for applications in natural hazard assessment and energy resource exploration. Current research interests include integrated interpretation of geophysical datasets and the application of Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) using optical fiber technologies. Future applications target geological carbon dioxide storage (CCS), water resource management, and infrastructure monitoring, with an emphasis on environmental sustainability and long-term societal resilience.

Peer-reviewed Journal Articles

1. Minato, S., R. Ghose, and T. Kiguchi, 2026, A semi-analytical approach to model borehole tube waves for interpretation of downhole seismic data in fault zones, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, accepted.
2. Minato, S., T. Yokota, and S. Nakayama, 2025, Enhancing illumination in DAS-FWI by combining strain-rate and pseudo-pressure data: A comparative study, Geophysics, in press.
3. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2025, Time-lapse S-wave tomography at a test dyke with changing water levels, Geophysics, 90, A21-WA246.
4. Kawasaki, Y., S. Minato, and R. Ghose, 2024, Subsoil density field reconstruction through 3-D FWI: a systematic comparison between vertical- and horizontal-force seismic sources, Geophysical Journal International, 236, 727-747.
5. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2021, A novel principle to localize the sensitivity of waveform tomography using wave interferences at the observation boundary, Scientific Reports, 11, 22073.
6. Minato, S., K. Wapenaar, and R. Ghose, 2020, Elastic least-squares migration for quantitative reflection imaging of fracture compliances, Geophysics, 85, S327-S342.
7. Hunziker, J., A. Greenwood, S. Minato, N. D. Barbosa, E. Caspari, and K. Holliger, 2020, Bayesian full-waveform inversion of tube waves to estimate fracture aperture and compliance, Solid Earth, 11(2), 657-668.
8. Minato, S., R. Ghose, and G. Osukuku, 2018, Experimental verification of spatially varying fracture-compliance estimates obtained from amplitude variation with offset inversion coupled with linear slip theory, Geophysics, 83, WA1-WA8.
9. Minato, S., R. Ghose, T. Tsuji, M. Ikeda, and K. Onishi, 2017, Hydraulic properties of closely spaced dipping open fractures intersecting a fluid-filled borehole derived from tube wave generation and scattering, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 122, 8003-8020.
10. Tsuji, T., S. Minato, R. Kamei, T. Tsuru, and G. Kimura, 2017, 3D geometry of a plate boundary fault related to the 2016 Off-Mie earthquake in the Nankai subduction zone, Japan, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 478, 234-244.
11. Suzaki, A., S. Minato, R. Ghose, C. Konishi, and N. Sakai, 2017, Modelling time-lapse shear-wave velocity changes in an unsaturated soil embankment due to water infiltration and drainage, First Break, 35(8), 81-90.
12. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2017, Low-frequency guided waves in a fluid-filled borehole: Simultaneous effects of generation and scattering due to multiple fractures, Journal of Applied Physics, 121, 104902.
13. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2016, Enhanced characterization of fracture compliance heterogeneity using multiple reflections and data-driven Green's function retrieval, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 121, 2813-2836.
14. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2016, AVO inversion for a non-welded interface: estimating compliances of a fluid-filled fracture, Geophysical Journal International, 206, 56-62.
15. Nishitsuji, Y., S. Minato, B. Boullenger, M. Gomez, K. Wapenaar, and D. Draganov, 2016, Crustal-scale reflection imaging and interpretation by passive seismic interferometry using local earthquakes, Interpretation, 4 (3), S29-SJ53.
16. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2015, Nonlinear imaging condition and the effect of source illumination: Imaging fractures as nonwelded interfaces, Geophysics, 80, A25-A30.
17. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2014, Imaging and characterization of a subhorizontal non-welded interface from point source elastic scattering response, Geophysical Journal International, 197, 1090-1095.
18. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2014, Power spectral density of the heterogeneous fracture compliance from scattered elastic wavefield, Geophysics, 79(2), D67-D79.
19. Minato, S. and R. Ghose, 2013, Inverse scattering solution for the spatially heterogeneous compliance of a single fracture, Geophysical Journal International, 195, 1878-1891.
20. Minato, S., T. Matsuoka and T. Tsuji, 2013, Singular-value decomposition analysis of source illumination in seismic interferometry by multidimensional deconvolution, Geophysics, 78(3),Q25-Q34.
21. Minato, S., T. Tsuji, S. Ohmi, and T. Matsuoka, 2012, Monitoring seismic velocity change caused by the 2011 Tohoku-oki earthquake using ambient noise records, Geophysical Research Letters, 39(9), L09309.
22. Minato, S., T. Tsuji, T. Matsuoka, and K. Obana, 2012, Crosscorrelation of earthquake data using stationary phase evaluation: Insight into reflection structures of oceanic crust surface in the Nankai Trough, International Journal of Geophysics, 2012, Article ID 101545, 8pages.
23. Minato, S., T. Tsuji, T. Matsuoka, N. Nishizaka, and M. Ikeda, 2012, Global optimization by simulated annealing for common reflection surface stacking, and its application to low-fold marine data in Southwest Japan, Exploration Geophysics, 43(2), 59-69.
24. Minato, S., T. Matsuoka, T. Tsuji, D. Draganov, J. Hunziker, and K. Wapenaar, 2011, Seismic interferometry using multidimensional deconvolution and crosscorrelation for crosswell seismic reflection data without borehole sources, Geophysics, 76, SA19-SA34.
25. Minato, S., T. Tsuji, T. Noguchi, K. Shiraishi, T. Matsuoka, Y. Fukao, and G. Moore, 2009, Estimation of detailed temperature distribution of sea water using seismic oceanography [in Japanese], BUTSURI-TANSA, 62, 509-520.