In- and outbound spreading of a free-particle s-wave.

We show that a free quantum particle in two dimensions with zero angular momentum (s wave) in the form of a ring-shaped wave packet feels an attraction towards the center of the ring, leading first to a contraction followed by an expansion. An experiment to demonstrate this effect is also outlined.

Time evolution of quantum fractals

We propose a general construction of wave functions of arbitrary prescribed fractal dimension, for a wide class of quantum problems, including the infinite potential well, harmonic oscillator, linear potential, and free particle. The box-counting dimension of the probability density P(t)(x) = |Psi(x,t)|(2) is shown not to change during the time evolution. We prove a universal relation D(t) = 1+Dx/2 linking the dimensions of space cross sections Dx and time cross sections D(t) of the fractal quantum carpets.