- Diffusion is the spontaneous movement of molecules from a region of higher concentration to lower concentration driven by the concentration gradient until equilibrium is reached.
- It plays an important role in processes like drug release from dosage forms, absorption of drugs from the gastrointestinal tract, distribution of drugs in tissues, and excretion of drugs through organs like the kidneys.
- Fick's first law quantifies diffusion as being directly proportional to the concentration gradient, while Fick's second law describes how the concentration changes over time at different locations during diffusion.
- Steady state diffusion refers to a constant rate of diffusion over time when the concentration gradient remains unchanged, such as in a diffusion cell experiment.