- A. is equal to the number of free electrons ✓
- B. is less than the number of free electrons
- C. is not equal to the number of free electrons
- D. is greater than the number of free electrons
The answer to the question is: A. is equal to the number of free electrons
The number of holes in an intrinsic semiconductor is equal to the number of free electrons. In an intrinsic semiconductor, the number of free electrons and the number of holes are equal due to the generation of electron-hole pairs through thermal excitation. When an electron is excited from the valence band to the conduction band, it leaves behind a hole in the valence band. This process maintains charge neutrality, as the number of positively charged holes is equal to the number of negatively charged free electrons.
