Bartlett, Neil (1932– )

British-born US chemist. In 1962 he prepared the first compound of one of the noble gases (rare gases), which were previously thought to be incapable of reacting with anything.

Bartlett was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, and attended the University of Durham. He took an appointment at the University of British Columbia, Canada, 1958, became professor of chemistry at Princeton, USA, 1966, and at the University of California, Berkeley, 1969.

In Canada Bartlett was working with platinum hexafluoride, PtF6, and found that it is extremely reactive. When he reacted it with xenon, the heaviest of the stable noble gases, he obtained xenon platinofluoride (xenon fluoroplatinate, XePtF6), the first chemical compound of an noble gas. Other compounds of xenon followed, including xenon fluoride (XeF4) and xenon oxyfluoride (XeOF4).