The unusual bonding of 5f orbitals in solid-state materials generates a wide variety of exotic electronic and magnetic behaviors that create challenges for developing a coherent understanding of bonding. Interactions and covalency of simple actinide oxides and other actinide materials with other light elements (C, N, S, etc.) are studied with state-of-the-art probes, including X-ray synchrotron radiation and luminescence techniques, to complement information derived from other physical measurements.
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Resonant X-ray emission spectroscopy (RXES) from alpha-plutonium as an example of a delocalized actinide intermetallic. [C. Booth et al., J. Electron. Spect. Relat. Phenom. 194, 57 (2014); Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 109, 10205 (2012)].