6. How Does Electricity Become Chemistry?

6. How Does Electricity Become Chemistry?

Aug 24, 2026·
Xander Chu
Xander Chu
· 1 min read
psychology

Key Question

How does an electrical signal inside one neuron become a chemical signal between neurons?

What You’ll Learn

  • What happens when an action potential reaches the axon terminal
  • Why calcium channels open
  • How calcium triggers neurotransmitter release
  • What synaptic vesicles do
  • How neurotransmitters cross the synaptic cleft

Key Takeaway

At the axon terminal, an electrical signal triggers calcium entry.

Calcium then helps trigger neurotransmitter release, converting electrical signalling into chemical communication.

Next

Continue to How Does a Neuron Decide to Fire? ⚖️

Xander Chu
Authors
Xander Chu (they/them)
Founder, XC Psych
Psychology student at UNSW exploring psychology and neurobiology from first principles, with a background in data science, machine learning, software engineering, and tennis coaching.