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A scattering cross-section divides the scattered rate per target by the incident particle flux. Its differential form resolves that rate by outgoing direction. It has units of area for three-dimensional scattering and length for two-dimensional scattering. In two dimensions, the convention $\psi \sim e^{ikr\cos \theta }+e^{i\pi /4}f(\theta )e^{ikr}/\sqrt{kr}$ gives $d\sigma /d\theta =|f(\theta ){|}^2/k$ by comparing outgoing and incident probability currents.

For an attractive spherical square well, let $\kappa =\sqrt{2m{V}_0}/\hslash$. At zero energy, the outer reduced radial wave is proportional to $r-a_s$ and the regular inner wave to $\sin (\kappa r)$. Matching their logarithmic derivatives gives $a_s=a-\tan (\kappa a)/\kappa$. Away from a threshold and at sufficiently low energy, the total S-wave scattering scattering cross-section tends to $4\pi a_s^2$. The length can be negative, zero or divergent.

For a real central potential and the outgoing convention $e^{i\pi /4}f(\theta )e^{ikr}/\sqrt{kr}$, the Partial-wave S-matrix is $S_m=e^{2i{\delta }_m}$. The cosine form of the Jacobi-Anger expansion fixes $w_0=1$ and $w_m=2$ for $m\ge 1$. Comparing the outgoing part of each phase-shifted radial cosine with the incident plane wave gives the displayed scattering amplitude. Integrating $|f{|}^2/k$ gives the displayed scattering cross-section, since the constant angular mode has squared norm $2\pi$ and each positive-order cosine has squared norm $\pi$. Reversing the multiplicities would already fail to reproduce the free plane wave at zero scattering phase shift.