A qualitative description of the response

The LSV current voltage curve, often called an LSV wave, for a reversible charge transfer reaction is shown in Fig. 2. The features of interest which are labelled are the peak current (/p), the peak potential (Fp), the reversible potential (Exev), and the half-peak potential (iJp/2). 

The experiment begins at the initial potential (FJj) which is well removed from Exev of the process of interest. The potential as a function of time is given by eqn. (1) 

The cyclic voltammogram for reaction (2) is shown in Fig. 3. The first half of the cycle, which involves a potential sweep from Ex to Ex, called the switching potential, is identical to the corresponding LSV wave (Fig. 

On the return sweep, the reduction continues since the surface C0/Cn still favors the formation of R until the balance shifts at 2 rev and oxidation current is observed for the remainder of the sweep. Other than the fact that the base line for the reverse wave is less well-defined, the shapes of the waves are very nearly the same in both directions for the reversible process. 

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