With a battery connected this way, the holes in the p-type region and the electrons in the n-type region are pushed toward the junction and start to neutralize the depletion zone, reducing its width. The positive potential applied to the p-type material repels the holes, while the negative potential applied to the n-type material repels the electrons. The change in potential between the p side and the n side decreases or switches sign. With increasing forward-bias voltage, the depletion zone eventually becomes thin enough that the zone's electric field cannot counteract charge carrier motion across the p–n junction, which as a consequence reduces electrical resistance. Electrons that cross the p–n junction into the p-type material (or holes that cross into the n-type material) diffuse into the nearby neutral region. The amount of minority diffusion in the near-neutral zones determines the amount of current that can flow through the diode.