Double-valuedness of the electron wave function and rotational zero-point motion of electrons in rings

arXiv:1007.2834 (Los Alamos), Mod. Phys. Lett. B 24, 2201 (2010).

I propose that the phase of an electron's wave function changes by π when the electron goes around a loop maintaining phase coherence. Equivalently, that the minimum orbital angular momentum of an electron in a ring is ℏ/2 rather than zero as generally assumed, hence that the electron in a ring has azimuthal zero point motion. This proposal provides a physical explanation for the origin of electronic `quantum pressure', it implies that a spin current exists in the ground state of aromatic ring molecules, and it suggests an explanation for the ubiquitousness of persistent currents observed in mesoscopic rings.

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