  High-entropy alloys (HEAs) such as CrMnFeCoNi exhibit unconventional
mechanical properties due to their compositional disorder. However, it remains
a formidable challenge to estimate the local chemical-environment and magnetic
effects of HEAs. Herein we identify the state-associated cohesive energy and
band filling originated from the tight-binding and Friedel models as
descriptors to quantify the site-to-site chemical bonding and magnetic moments
of HEAs. We find that the s-state cohesive energy is indispensable in
determining the bonding-strength trend of CrMnFeCoNi that differs from the
bonding characteristics of precious and refractory HEAs, while the s-band
filling is effective in determining the magnetic moments. This unusual behavior
stems from the unique chemical and magnetic nature of Cr atoms and is
essentially due to the localized and transferred itinerant electrons. Our study
establishes a fundamental physical picture of chemical bonding and magnetic
interactions of HEAs and provides a rational guidance for designing advanced
structural alloys.
