Reversible switching of surface texture by hydrogen intercalation

The interaction of atomic hydrogen with a single layer of hexagonal boron nitride on rhodium [1] leads to a removal of the $h$-BN surface corrugation within the 3\, nm unit cell. The process is reversible as the hydrogen may be expelled by annealing to about 500\, K whereupon the nano-texture is restored. This effect is traced back to hydrogen intercalation. It is expected to have implications for applications, like the storage of hydrogen, the peeling of sp$^2$-hybridized layers from solid substrates or the control of the wetting angle, to name a few.\\[4pt] [1] Boron Nitride Nanomesh, Corso et al. Science, 303 (2004) 217.