ionic density of the surface layer at the electrode will change until a new equilibrium condition is achieved the relaxation time is defined as the amount of time needed for the system to arrive at a new equilibrium condition the relaxation time constant which characterizes the change in ratio of ionic densities versus time is defined by the specific dielectric constant divided by the specific electrical conductivity both of which are properties of the electrolytic solution a positive voltage pulse that is imposed across an electrochemical system a pulsetype a is defined by the rise time of the pulse which refers to the amount of time needed for the starting edge of the voltage pulse to make a transition from about the time when the pulse begins to rise to about the time when the maximum peak of the pulse is reached if the rise time of pulsetype a is less than the relaxation time of the electrochemical system then an overvoltage condition is imposed on the electrochemical system then the ion density ratio will change to a new value over the course of the relaxation time based on the newly imposed potential difference according to the boltzmann distribution law of equation 1 a positive voltage pulse causing an overvoltage in an electrochemical system will cause the ratio of the ionic.