title: CO oxidation as a prototypical reaction for heterogeneous processes.
abstract: CO oxidation, although seemingly a simple chemical reaction, provides us with a panacea that reveals the richness and beauty of heterogeneous catalysis. The Fritz Haber Institute is a place where a multidisciplinary approach to study the course of such a heterogeneous reaction can be generated in house. Research at the institute is primarily curiosity driven, which is reflected in the five sections comprising this Review. We use an approach based on microscopic concepts to study the interaction of simple molecules with well-defined materials, such as clusters in the gas phase or solid surfaces. This approach often asks for the development of new methods, tools, and materials to prove them, and it is exactly this aspect, both, with respect to experiment and theory, that is a trade mark of our institute.
authors.affiliation: Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Faradayweg 4-6, 14195 Berlin, Germany. freund@fhi-berlin.mpg.de
authors.forename: Hans-Joachim
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Freund
authors.forename: Gerard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Meijer
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Scheffler
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schlögl
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wolf