Delocalization and occupancy effects of 5f orbitals in plutonium intermetallics using L3-edge resonant X-ray emission spectroscopy

Although actinide (An) L3-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy has been very effective in determining An oxidation states in insulating, ionically bonded materials, such as in certain coordination compounds and mineral systems, the technique fails in systems featuring more delocalized 5f orbitals, especially in metals. Recently, actinide L3-edge resonant X-ray emission spectroscopy (RXES) has been shown to be an effective alternative. This technique is further demonstrated here using a parameterized partial unoccupied density of states method to quantify both occupancy and delocalization of the 5f orbital in α-Pu, δ-Pu, PuCoGa5, PuCoIn5, and PuSb2. These new results, supported by FEFF calculations, highlight the effects of strong correlations on RXES spectra and the technique's ability to differentiate between f-orbital occupation and delocalization.