Fluctuation-Induced Transitions in a Bistable Surface Reaction: Catalytic CO Oxidation on a Pt Field Emitter Tip

Abstract

Fluctuations which arise in catalytic CO oxidation on a Pt field emitter tip have been studied with field electron microscopy as the imaging method. Fluctuation-driven transitions between the active and the inactive branch of the reaction are found to occur sufficiently close to the bifurcation point, terminating the bistable range. The experimental results are modeled with Monte Carlo simulations of a lattice-gas reaction model incorporating rapid CO diffusion. {copyright} {ital 1999} {ital The American Physical Society}