Question

Metals are good conductors of electricity because

• A. They have high melting points
• B. The atoms are lightly packed
• C. They contain free electrons
• D. All of the above

Hint:

Ask what actually carries the current inside a metal.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Electric current is the flow of charge through a material. For a material to conduct electricity well, it needs charge carriers that can move freely through it.

In a metal, the outermost electrons of each atom are not tightly bound to any single atom. These electrons move freely throughout the metal lattice, forming what is often called a sea of free electrons. When a voltage is applied across the metal, these free electrons drift and carry electric current easily. This is why metals conduct electricity well.

Option A is wrong because a high melting point is related to the strength of metallic bonding and thermal properties, not to how easily charge flows through the material.

Option B is wrong because metal atoms are actually packed closely together in a regular lattice, not lightly packed, and packing density is not the direct reason for conduction.

Option D is wrong because since options A and B are not correct reasons, all of the above cannot be the right choice.

The correct answer is that metals contain free electrons.