Class B amplifiers conduct for exactly half (180 degrees) of the input signal cycle.
To reproduce a full waveform, two transistors are used in a push-pull arrangement — one for the positive half and one for the negative half of the signal.
However, at the point where one transistor turns off and the other turns on (the zero crossing), there can be a mismatch or non-linearity.
This results in a phenomenon known as crossover distortion.
Class A amplifiers conduct for the entire signal cycle and do not suffer from this, while Class AB is designed to reduce this issue.