ABSTRACT

Electroanalytical techniques are an extension of classical oxidation-reduction chemistry, and indeed oxidation and reduction processes occur at the surface of or within the two electrodes, oxidation at one and reduction at the other. Electrons are consumed by the reduction process at one electrode and generated by the oxidation process at the other. The electrode at which oxidation occurs is termed the

anode

. The electrode at which reduction occurs is termed the

cathode

. The complete system, with the anode connected to the cathode via an external conductor, is often called a

cell

. The individual oxidation and reduction reactions are called

half-reactions

.