Question

The number of electrons in an insulator is of the same order as the number of electrons in a conductor. What is then the basic difference between a conductor and an insulator?

Answer 1

The outer electrons of an atom or molecule in a conductor are only weakly bound to it and are free to move throughout the body of the material. On the other hand, in insulators, the electrons are tightly bound to their respective atoms and cannot leave their parent atoms and move through a long distance.