Character of 5f states in the Pu-Am system from magnetic susceptibility, electrical resistivity, and photoelectron spectroscopy measurements

Alloying Pu with Am stabilizes the fcc structure of delta-Pu for all temperatures and expands the lattice. delta-Pu is assumed close to the borderline of 5f localization. It is a nonmagnetic strongly correlated system, which should be sensitive to doping or lattice expansion. However, magnetic susceptibility, electrical resistivity, and photoelectron spectroscopy studies performed for the Pu-rich part (from 5 to 43 % Am) of the Pu-Am phase diagram indicate that the character of the 5f states does not vary with the Am doping. These findings are discussed within the present debate about the electronic structure of plutonium.