The importance of electron scattering in the analysis of actinide X-ray spectroscopy

Abstract Manifestations of electron scattering in X-ray spectroscopy have been evident for decades. Here, it will be shown that the proper interpretation of variants of X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) of actinide materials must include an accurate treatment of features caused by electron scattering, i.e., EXAFS or Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure. These EXAFS features can be of such low energy that they are within ten to twenty electron volts of the Unoccupied Density of States (UDOS), immediately above the Fermi Energy or Band Gap. The adaption of simple models using the FEFF simulation program will be presented, including the demonstration of the robust nature of the results from different models. Graphical abstract