What does one ampere equate to in terms of charge?

One ampere is defined as the flow of electric charge where one coulomb of charge passes through a conductor in one second. This definition stems from the relationship between current (measured in amperes) and charge (measured in coulombs), established by the fundamental equation:

[ I = \frac{Q}{t} ]

where ( I ) is the current in amperes, ( Q ) is the charge in coulombs, and ( t ) is the time in seconds. By rearranging this formula, you get:

[ I = 1 , \text{A} \equiv Q = 1 , \text{C} \text{ in } 1 , \text{s} ]

Thus, when we say that one ampere equals one coulomb per second, it illustrates that for each second, a charge of one coulomb is flowing through the circuit. This aligns perfectly with the definition of an ampere, confirming that the correct answer is indeed one coulomb per second.