Flattening and manipulation of the electronic structure of h-BN/Rh(111) nanomesh upon Sn intercalation

• Published in: Surface science Vol. 672-673; pp. 33 - 38
• Main Authors: Sugiyama, Yuya, Bernard, Carlo, Okuyama, Yuma, Ideta, Shin-ichiro, Tanaka, Kiyohisa, Greber, Thomas, Hirahara, Toru
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.06.2018; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Bandwidths; Boron; Boron nitride; Diffraction; Electron diffraction; Electronic structure; Flattening; Hexagonal boron nitride; Intercalation; Lattice parameters; Photoelectric emission; Spectrum analysis; Two-dimensional materials; Two-dimensional materials; Hexagonal boron nitride; Intercalation
• ISSN: 0039-6028; 1879-2758
• DOI: 10.1016/j.susc.2018.03.007

•Sn was deposited on h-BN/Rh(111).•RHEED and ARPES measurements showed that Sn was intercalated between h-BN and Rh.•The bandwidth of the pi band of h-BN increased significantly band by the intercalation, while the sigma band showed minimal change. [Display omitted] We have deposited Sn on corrugated hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanomeshs formed on Rh(111) and found that Sn atoms are intercalated between h-BN and Rh, flattening the h-BN. Our reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) analysis showed that the average in-plane lattice constant of h-BN increases due to the loss of the corrugation. Furthermore, electronic structure measurements based on angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) showed that the h-BN π band width increases significantly while the σ band width does not change as much. These behaviors were partly different from previous reports on the intercalation of h-BN/Rh system. Our results offer a novel, simple method to control the electronic structure of h-BN.