Exploring Bonds and Electronic Structure in Plutonium Hybrid Materials
Department of Energy, Office of ScienceStudying the electronic structure of actinide elements can help advance the future of nuclear materials. A new study of several plutonium hybrid materials found that the bonds between these elements were predominantly ionic but also involved covalent bonding associated with the 5f electron shell. This research contributes to the collective goal of resolving the f-electron challenge, the goal of the Department of Energy Office of Science’s Heavy Element Chemistry program.