Thewear resistance of a Rh(111) surface can be strongly increasedby interstitial alloying with boron atoms via chemical vapor depositionof trimethylborate [B(OCH3)3] at moderate temperaturesof about 800 K. The fragmentation of the precursor results in singleboron atoms that are incorporated in the fcc lattice of the substrate,as displayed by X-ray photoelectron diffraction. The penetration depthof the boron atoms is in the range of at least 100 nm with the borondistribution displaying a nearly homogeneous depth profile, as examinedby combined X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Ar ion etching experiments.Compared to the bare Rh(111) surface, the wear resistance of the boron-dopedRh surface is increased to about 400%, as probed by the scratchingexperiments with atomic force microscopy. The presented synthesisroute provides an easy method for case hardening of micro- or nanoelectromechanicaldevices (MEMS and NEMS, respectively) at moderate temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]