FEFF analysis of americium oxides

Abstract

The Am N4,5 (4d3/2 and 4d5/2) and Am O4,5 (5d3/2 and 5d5/2) x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) of americium sesquioxide (Am2O3) and americium dioxide (AmO2) has been evaluated with FEFF, a Green's function–based, multiple scattering code. Taking guidance from the intermediate coupling model (ICM), applicable to local and nonmagnetized samples, it is possible to completely reconstruct the experimental results for the N4,5 spectra, including the observed differences between the Am2O3 and the AmO2 cases. Although complicated by a more asymmetric line shape and difficult background variations, the FEFF analysis confirms the absence of core hole angular momentum coupling in Am O4,5 spectroscopy.