Pu 5f Occupation in Plutonium Dioxide

Inorganic Chemistry have published an article by J. G. Tobin and S.-W. Yu in which an actinide N4,5 branching ratio analysis of PuO2 and UO2 has been performed.

A scanning electron microscope was used to take measurements at the Advanced Light Source at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, CA. The findings of the study produced a result that the 5f occupation of the Pu in plutonium dioxide is n = 5, which is contrary to results from studies using different techniques.

Silson’s silicon nitride membranes of 100 nm thickness were used for the experiments, in which our windows were used to encapsulate radioactive samples

Follow this link to read the entire paper!

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