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Q
1. See KÖNIGSBERGER RATIO.

2. The ratio of the frequency at the mid-point of a bandpass filter to the filter width.

3. The ratio of the peak energy in a waveform to the energy lost by dissipation. As a measure of seismic absorption it has been used effectively in delimiting Benioff zones using natural earthquake events (high Q implies low absorption and is associated with crust and deep mantle; low Q implies high absorption and is associated with the subcrustal low-velocity layer.

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences

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