Enhancement of surface self-diffusion of platinum atoms by adsorbed hydrogen

Surface diffusion of atoms is an important phenomenon in areas of materials processing such as thin-film growth and sintering, Self-diffusion (that is , diffusion of the atoms of which the surface is comprised) has been much s tudied on clean metal and semiconductor surfaces(1,2). But in most cases of practical interest the diffusion happens on surfaces partly covered by ato ms and molecules adsorbed from the gas phase. Adsorbed hydrogen atoms are k nown to be capable of both promoting and inhibiting self-diffusion(3-7), of fering the prospect of using adsorbed gases to control growth or sintering processes(8-11). Here we derive mechanistic insights into this effect from observations, using the scanning tunnelling microscope, of hydrogen-promote d self-diffusion of platinum on the Pt(110) surface. We see an activated Pt -H complex which has a diffusivity enhanced by a factor of 500 at room temp erature, relative to the other Pt adatoms, Our density-functional calculati ons indicate that the Pt-H complex consists of a hydrogen atom trapped on t op of a platinum atom, and that the bound hydrogen atom decreases the diffu sion barrier.