Electrophoresis is a method whereby charged molecules in solution, chiefly proteins and nucleic acids, migrate in response to an electrical field.
Their rate of migration through the electrical field, depends on the strength of the field, on the net charge, size, and shape of the molecules, and also on the ionic strength, viscosity, and temperature of the medium in which the molecules are moving.
As an analytical tool, electrophoresis is simple, rapid and highly sensitive.
It can be used analytically to study the properties of a single charged species or mixtures of molecules. It can also be used preparatively as a separating technique