Electrochemical surface science: past, present and future

Electrochemical surface science means the search for a truly microscopic understanding of electrochemical reactions and hence, of the place where it happens??the solid/liquid interface. It is described how electrochemists adopted strategies and techniques from their surface science colleagues to develop an atomistic view of electrode surfaces (mostly metals) and of simple reactions occurring thereon. Information about surface structure and chemical composition of the interface as a function of potential played a key role in complementing thermodynamic data derived from classical electrochemical methods. The move from structure to dynamics??on an atomistic level??will be the task which lies ahead of us.