Imaging surface topographical changes during plastic deformation of a metal with chemical wave patterns

A thin Pt(1 0 0) single crystal was bent across a wedge in a reacting NO, CO atmosphere at 10−5 mbar employing photoelectron emission microscopy (PEEM) as spatially resolving method. To visualize surface topographical changes during this plastic deformation chemical wave patterns in the NO + CO reaction were imaged with PEEM. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the bent crystal was used to correlate changes in the wave patterns with topographical features. We observed a change in the apparent anisotropy of the surface, the development of spiral waves pinned to structural defects, and a breakup of the reacting surface into isolated domains of pattern formation.