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A systematic X-ray absorption study at actinide N6,7 (4f → 6d transitions) edges was performed for light-actinide oxides including data obtained for the first time for NpO2, PuO2, and UO3. The measurements were supported by ab initio calculations based on local-density-approximation with added 5f-5f Coulomb interaction (LDA+U). Improved energy resolution compared to common experiments at actinide L2,3 (2p → 6d transitions) edges allowed us to resolve the major structures of the unoccupied 6d density of states (DOS) and estimate the crystal-field splittings in the 6d shell directly from the spectra of light-actinide dioxides. The measurements demonstrated an enhanced sensitivity of the N6,7 spectral shape to changes in the compound crystal structure. For nonstoichiometric NpO2-x, the filling of the entire band gap with Np 6d states was observed thus supporting a phase coexistence of Np metal and stoichiometric NpO2 which is in agreement with the tentative Np-O phase diagram. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study addresses the possibilities of immobilizing the mobile species of actinides in the geosphere using metallic iron. Sorption on corroding iron is well-known, but there have been uncertainties with regard to the possibilities of reducing the actinyl species to sparingly soluble oxides and, thereby, permanently immobilizing them. Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) measurements at the actinide 5d edges on Fe foils exposed to uranium(VI) and neptunium(V) solutions in groundwater unambigiously indicate reduction of actinides to, respectively, uranium(IV) and neptunium(IV) on iron surfaces. The reduction manifests itself in an appearance of distinct specific signatures of uranium(IV) and neptunium(IV) in the RIXS profile of 5f–5f excitations. Such signatures and RIXS intensity/cross-section behavior with varying energy of incident photons can be reproduced by model atomic-multiplet calculations of the RIXS spectra. By normalizing the RIXS signal of corresponding 5f–5f excitations to core-to-core 6p-to-5d characteristic fluorescence transitions of actinides, their reduction rates on Fe samples with different exposure to actinide solutions can be estimated. Observed reduction implies similar processes in the nuclear waste canister thus suggesting reduced probability of nuclear waste release with ground waters from the canister. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chalcogenide perovskites exhibit optoelectronic properties that position them as potential materials in the field of photovoltaics. We report a detailed investigation into the electronic structure and chemical properties of polycrystalline BaZrS 3 perovskite powder by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, complemented by an analysis of its long- and short-range geometric structures using X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The results obtained for the powdered BaZrS 3 are compared to similar measurements on a sputtered polycrystalline BaZrS 3 thin film prepared through rapid thermal processing. While bulk characterization confirms the good quality of the powder, depth-profiling achieved by photoelectron spectroscopy utilizing Al K α (1.487 keV) and Ga K α (9.25 keV) radiations shows that, regardless of the fabrication method, the oxidation effects extend beyond 10 nm from the sample surface, with zirconium oxides specifically distributing deeper than the oxidized sulfur species. A hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study on the powder and thin film detects signals with minimal contamination contributions and allows for the determination of the valence band maximum position with respect to the Fermi level. Based on these measurements, we establish a correlation between the experimental valence band spectra and the theoretical density of states derived from density functional theory calculations, thereby discerning the orbital constituents involved. Our analysis provides an improved understanding of the electronic structure of BaZrS 3 developed through different synthesis protocols by linking it to material geometry, surface chemistry, and the nature of doping. This methodology can thus be adapted for describing electronic structures of chalcogenide perovskite semiconductors in general, a knowledge that is significant for interface engineering and, consequently, for device integration.

The performance of hybrid perovskite materials in solar cells crucially depends on their electronic properties, and it is important to investigate contributions to the total electronic structure from specific components in the material. In a combined theoretical and experimental study of CH 3 NH 3 PbI 3 -methylammonium lead triiodide (MAPI)-and its bromide cousin CH 3 NH 3 PbBr 3 (MAPB), we analyze nitrogen K-edge (N 1s-to-2p*) X-ray absorption (XA) spectra measured in MAPI and MAPB single crystals. This permits comparison of spectral features to the local character of unoccupied molecular orbitals on the CH 3 NH 3 + (MA + ) counterions and allows us to investigate how thermal fluctuations, hydrogen bonding, and halide-ion substitution influence the XA spectra as a measure of the local electronic structure. In agreement with the experiment, the simulated spectra for MAPI and MAPB show close similarity, except that the MAPB spectral features are blue-shifted by +0.31 eV. The shift is shown to arise from the intrinsic difference in the electronic structure of the two halide atoms rather than from structural differences between the materials. In addition, from the spectral sampling analysis of molecular dynamics simulations, clear correlations between geometric descriptors (N-C, N-H, and H···I/Br distances) and spectral features are identified and used to explain the spectral shapes., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

The chemical properties of actinide materials are often predefined and described based on the data available for isostructural species. This is the case for potassium plutonyl ( Pu VI ) carbonate, K 4 Pu VI O 2 (CO 3 ) 3(cr) , a complex relevant for nuclear technology and the environment, of which the crystallographic and thermodynamic properties of which are still lacking. We report here the synthesis and characterization of Pu VI achieved by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis and high-energy-resolution fluorescence-detected X-ray absorption near-edge structure at the Pu M 4 -edge coupled with electronic structure calculations. The crystallographic properties of Pu VI are compared with isostructural uranium (U) and neptunium (Np) compounds. Actinyl (An VI ) axial bond lengths, [O-An VI -O] 2+ , are correlated between solid, K 4 An VI O 2 (CO 3 ) 3(cr) , and aqueous, [An VI O 2 (CO 3 ) 3 ] 4- (aq) species for the U VI - Np VI - Pu VI series. The spectroscopic data are compared to KPu V O 2 CO 3(cr) and Pu IV O 2(cr) to tackle the trend in the electronic structure of Pu VI regarding the oxidation state changes and local structural modifications around the Pu atom.

Valence-to-core resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) and high energy resolution fluorescence detection (HERFD) X-ray absorption measurements were performed at the U L3 edges of UO2 and UO2(NO3)2(H2O)6. The results are compared with model calculations based on the local-density-approximation formalism, taking into account Coulomb interaction U (LDA + U). We show that despite strong 5f-5f electronic correlations in the studied systems and the use of core-level excitations in the intermediate stage of the spectroscopic process, the RIXS technique probes a convolution of the single-particle densities of states in the valence and conduction bands. For UO2, the detected crystal-field splitting between the U 6d eg and t2g orbitals from the RIXS spectra (∼3.5 eV) is larger than that previously derived from optical spectroscopy. Furthermore, by using an example of the U0.75Pu0.25O2 mixed oxide, we show that the RIXS technique at the U L3 edges is sensitive to the substitution of U with other actinide, in contrast to conventional X-ray absorption methods. That is, due to changes in the occupied part rather than in the unoccupied part of the U 6d states caused by the substitution.