![]() Cathodes get their name from cations (positively charged ions) and anodes from anions (negatively charged ions). When naming the electrodes, it is better to refer to the positive electrode and the negative electrode. ![]() In a battery, on the same electrode, both reactions can occur, whether the battery is discharging or charging. Conversely, an anode is the electrode in a polarized electrical device through which current flows in from an outside circuit. A cathode is an electrode where a reduction reaction occurs (gain of electrons for the electroactive species). If electrons always flow into the cathode (by way of definition of cathode), this statement implies that the cathode can be at a positive voltage relative to the anode. A cathode is the metallic electrode through which current flows out in a polarized electrical device. How would you define this term clearly and unambiguously? Does the common use of the term “cathode” really reverse when the current carrier is positive, as suggested in the article?Įdit: What actually confuses me is the phrase “Cathode polarity is not always negative”. If the definition is referring to the current carriers, then the definition might be rephrased as “cathode is an electrode through which the charged current carriers flow out” (or “in”?). Hence, this definition seems to be a bit lacking. However, the direction of current flow is purely an arbitrary convention, and is in fact the opposite direction to which electrons flow in a metal conductor. According to Wikipedia’s definition, a cathode is “an electrode through which electric current flows out of a polarized electrical device”. Under all circumstances anode and cathode are defined as follows: the cathode is where species are reduced.
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