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X-ray Photoelectron Spectra of Uranium Oxides

Abstract

THE oxides of uranium are important compounds both chemically and industrially. In applications such as nuclear technology, it is of interest to know the oxidation state of uranium in the particular environment. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, XPS or ESCA1, is an analytical technique which may prove useful in this respect1,2. It has been shown1,3 that core electron levels are sensitive to the chemical environment of the atom concerned and the resulting small changes in core electron binding energies are described as a chemical shift. Since chemical shifts are dependent on the effective atomic charge, a variation in the core binding energies of uranium in its different oxidation states is likely. We therefore examined the X-ray I photoelectron spectra of the three uranium oxides, UO2, U3O8 and UO3, as well as uranium metal.

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References

  1. Siegbahn, K., Nordling, C., Fahlman, A., Nordberg, R., Hamrin, K., Hedman, J., Johansson, G., Bergmark, T., Karlsson, S.-E., Lindgren, I., and Lindberg, B., ESCA, Atomic, Molecular and Solid State Structure Studied by Means of Electron Spectroscopy (Almqvist and Wiksell, Uppsala, 1967).

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  2. Hercules, D. M., Anal. Chem., 42, 20A (1970).

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  3. Siegbahn, K., Nordling, G., Johansson, G., Hedman, J., Heden, P. F., Hamrin, K., Gelius, U., Bergmark, T., Werme, L. O., Manne, R., and Baer, Y., ESCA Applied to Free Molecules (North-Holland, Amsterdam, 1969).

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CHADWICK, D., GRAHAM, J. X-ray Photoelectron Spectra of Uranium Oxides. Nature Physical Science 237, 127–128 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1038/physci237127a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/physci237127a0

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