High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is a technique used to separate compounds based on differences in their interactions with a stationary phase. There are various modes of separation including ion exchange, size exclusion, hydrophobic interaction, and affinity chromatography. The choice of technique depends on the physicochemical properties of the compounds being separated. Reversed-phase HPLC, which uses a non-polar stationary phase and polar mobile phase, is the most commonly used mode, allowing separation based on a compound's relative polarity.