QUANTUM ESPRESSO is an integrated suite of computer codes for electronic-structure calculations and materials modeling, based on density-functional theory, plane waves, and pseudopotentials (norm-conserving, ultrasoft, and projector-augmented wave). The acronym ESPRESSO stands for opEn Source Package for Research in Electronic Structure, Simulation, and Optimization. It is freely available to researchers around the world under the terms of the GNU General Public License. QUANTUM ESPRESSO builds upon newly-restructured electronic-structure codes that have been developed and tested by some of the original authors of novel electronic-structure algorithms and applied in the last twenty years by some of the leading materials modeling groups worldwide. Innovation and efficiency are still its main focus, with special attention paid to massively parallel architectures, and a great effort being devoted to user friendliness. QUANTUM ESPRESSO is evolving towards a distribution of independent and interoperable codes in the spirit of an open-source project, where researchers active in the field of electronic-structure calculations are encouraged to participate in the project by contributing their own codes or by implementing their own ideas into existing codes.

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QUANTUM ESPRESSO: a modular and open-source software project for quantum simulations of materials

Scaling factors for obtaining fundamental vibrational frequencies, low-frequency vibrations, zero-point vibrational energies (ZPVE), and thermal contributions to enthalpy and entropy from harmonic frequencies determined at 19 levels of theory have been derived through a least-squares approach. Semiempirical methods (AM1 and PM3), conventional uncorrelated and correlated ab initio molecular orbital procedures [Hartree−Fock (HF), Moller−Plesset (MP2), and quadratic configuration interaction including single and double substitutions (QCISD)], and several variants of density functional theory (DFT:  B-LYP, B-P86, B3-LYP, B3-P86, and B3-PW91) have been examined in conjunction with the 3-21G, 6-31G(d), 6-31+G(d), 6-31G(d,p), 6-311G(d,p), and 6-311G(df,p) basis sets. The scaling factors for the theoretical harmonic vibrational frequencies were determined by a comparison with the corresponding experimental fundamentals utilizing a total of 1066 individual vibrations. Scaling factors suitable for low-frequency vib...

Harmonic Vibrational Frequencies: An Evaluation of Hartree−Fock, Møller−Plesset, Quadratic Configuration Interaction, Density Functional Theory, and Semiempirical Scale Factors

Although density functional theory is widely used in the computational chemistry community, the most popular density functional, B3LYP, has some serious shortcomings: (i) it is better for main-group chemistry than for transition metals; (ii) it systematically underestimates reaction barrier heights; (iii) it is inaccurate for interactions dominated by medium-range correlation energy, such as van der Waals attraction, aromatic−aromatic stacking, and alkane isomerization energies. We have developed a variety of databases for testing and designing new density functionals. We used these data to design new density functionals, called M06-class (and, earlier, M05-class) functionals, for which we enforced some fundamental exact constraints such as the uniform-electron-gas limit and the absence of self-correlation energy. Our M06-class functionals depend on spin-up and spin-down electron densities (i.e., spin densities), spin density gradients, spin kinetic energy densities, and, for nonlocal (also called hybrid)...

Density functionals with broad applicability in chemistry.

Quantum computers promise to efficiently solve important problems that are intractable on a conventional computer. For quantum systems, where the physical dimension grows exponentially, finding the eigenvalues of certain operators is one such intractable problem and remains a fundamental challenge. The quantum phase estimation algorithm efficiently finds the eigenvalue of a given eigenvector but requires fully coherent evolution. Here we present an alternative approach that greatly reduces the requirements for coherent evolution and combine this method with a new approach to state preparation based on ansatze and classical optimization. We implement the algorithm by combining a highly reconfigurable photonic quantum processor with a conventional computer. We experimentally demonstrate the feasibility of this approach with an example from quantum chemistry--calculating the ground-state molecular energy for He-H(+). The proposed approach drastically reduces the coherence time requirements, enhancing the potential of quantum resources available today and in the near future.

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A variational eigenvalue solver on a photonic quantum processor

A new hybrid density functional for general chemistry applications is proposed. It is based on a mixing of standard generalized gradient approximations GGAs for exchange by Becke B and for correlation by Lee, Yang, and Parr LYP with Hartree-Fock HF exchange and a perturbative second-order correlation part PT2 that is obtained from the Kohn-Sham GGA orbitals and eigenvalues. This virtual orbital-dependent functional contains only two global parameters that describe the mixture of HF and GGA exchange ax and of the PT2 and GGA correlation c, respectively. The parameters are obtained in a least-squares-fit procedure to the G2/97 set of heat of formations. Opposed to conventional hybrid functionals, the optimum ax is found to be quite large 53% with c=27% which at least in part explains the success for many problematic molecular systems compared to conventional approaches. The performance of the new functional termed B2-PLYP is assessed by the G2/97 standard benchmark set, a second test suite of atoms, molecules, and reactions that are considered as electronically very difficult including transition-metal compounds, weakly bonded complexes, and reaction barriers and comparisons with other hybrid functionals of GGA and meta-GGA types. According to many realistic tests, B2-PLYP can be regarded as the best general purpose density functional for molecules e.g., a mean absolute deviation for the two test sets of only 1.8 and 3.2 kcal/mol compared to about 3 and 5 kcal/mol, respectively, for the best other density functionals. Very importantly, also the maximum and minium errors outliers are strongly reduced by about 10‐20 kcal/mol. Furthermore, very good results are obtained for transition state barriers but unlike previous attempts at such a good description, this definitely comes not at the expense of equilibrium properties. Preliminary calculations of the equilibrium bond lengths and harmonic vibrational frequencies for diatomic molecules and transition-metal complexes also show very promising results. The uniformity with which B2-PLYP improves for a wide range of chemical systems emphasizes the need of virtual orbital-dependent terms that describe nonlocal electron correlation in accurate exchange-correlation functionals. From a practical point of view, the new functional seems to be very robust and it is thus suggested as an efficient quantum chemical method of general purpose. © 2006 American Institute of Physics. DOI: 10.1063/1.2148954

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Semiempirical hybrid density functional with perturbative second-order correlation

Planar (D6h) benzene has one (1181i cm-1, b2g) and three (1844i cm-1, b2g; 462i cm-1, e2u) imaginary vibrational frequencies at the MP2/6-311++G(d,p) and MP2/6-311++G levels of theory, respectively! The spurious frequencies correspond to D3d chair (b2g) and C2v boat (e2u) out-of-plane distortions. Numerous, similar examples where planar benzene is not a minimum are documented at the MP2, MP3, and CISD levels with popular Pople-type basis sets, while the RHF, B3LYP, and BLYP methods exhibit no such problems. We show that, in the sp and spd atomic-orbital limits of MP2 theory, benzene is nonplanar. The observed failure of electron correlation methods with unbalanced basis sets to predict planar minima is not unique to benzene but is also found for other π-delocalized molecules, including pyridine, naphthalene, anthracene, the cyclopentadienyl and indenyl anions, and the tropylium cation. Detailed mathematical analysis reveals that an insidious, geometry-dependent, two-electron basis set incompleteness error...

Popular Theoretical Methods Predict Benzene and Arenes To Be Nonplanar

For the first time high-order excitations (n>2) have been studied in three multireference couple cluster (MRCC) theories built on the wave operator formalism: (1) the state-universal (SU) method of Jeziorski and Monkhorst (JM) (2) the state-specific Brillouin-Wigner (BW) coupled cluster method, and (3) the state-specific MRCC approach of Mukherjee (Mk). For the H4, P4, BeH(2), and H8 models, multireference coupled cluster wave functions, with complete excitations ranging from doubles to hextuples, have been computed with a new arbitrary-order string-based code. Comparison is then made to corresponding single-reference coupled cluster and full configuration interaction (FCI) results. For the ground states the BW and Mk methods are found, in general, to provide more accurate results than the SU approach at all levels of truncation of the cluster operator. The inclusion of connected triple excitations reduces the nonparallelism error in singles and doubles MRCC energies by a factor of 2-10. In the BeH(2) and H8 models, the inclusion of all quadruple excitations yields absolute energies within 1 kcal mol(-1) of the FCI limit. While the MRCC methods are very effective in multireference regions of the potential energy surfaces, they are outperformed by single-reference CC when one electronic configuration dominates.

High-order excitations in state-universal and state-specific multireference coupled cluster theories: model systems.

The energetics of the station- ary points of the gas-phase reactions CH3X F CH3F X (X F, Cl, CN, OH, SH, NH2 and PH2) have been definitively computed using focal point analyses. These analyses entailed extrap- olation to the one-particle limit for the Hartree ± Fock and MP2 energies using basis sets of up to aug-cc-pV5Z quality, inclusion of higher-order electron corre- lation (CCSD and CCSD(T)) with basis sets of aug-cc-pVTZ quality, and addi- tion of auxiliary terms for core correla- tion and scalar relativistic effects. The final net activation barriers for the forward reactions are: E b

http://theop11.chem.elte.hu/main_index_files/2003_Gonzales_CEJ_SN2.pdf

Definitive Ab Initio Studies of Model SN2 Reactions CH3X+F− (X=F, Cl, CN, OH, SH, NH2, PH2)

Several complementary analyses have been performed in an investigation of the use of reference geometric structures which are not stationary at a given level of theory in the prediction of improved equilibrium anharmonic molecular force fields. Diatomic paradigms for the procedure were established by constructing empirical potential energy functions for the nitrogen and fluorine molecules which not only reproduce the available Rydberg–Klein–Rees data but also provide reliable derivatives through fourth order for ranges of 0.4 A or greater around the equilibrium bond distance. For comparison, analogous curves were determined at the double‐ζ plus polarization (DZP) restricted Hartree–Fock (RHF) level of theory, and the quartic force fields for N2 and F2 were also obtained at the experimental re structures using a (8s5p3d2f1g) basis set and the coupled‐cluster singles and doubles method augmented by a perturbative contribution from connected triple excitations [CCSD(T)].The results substantiate the ability o...

https://theop11.chem.elte.hu/main_index_files/1993_Allen_JCP_98_2983_NonStat.pdf

On the ab initio determination of higher-order force constants at nonstationary reference geometries

Recent studies have seriously questioned the use of higher-order Mo/ller–Plesset perturbation theory (MPn) in describing electron correlation in atomic and molecular systems. Here we first reinvestigate with improved numerical techniques previously controversial and disturbing MPn energetic series for Ne, F−, HF, BH, C2 and N2. Conspicuously absent in previous work is research on the convergence of MPn spectroscopic constants, and thus complete MPn (energy, re, ωe) series were then computed for (BH, HF, CN+, C2 and N2) through the high orders (MP25, MP21, MP13, MP39 and MP19) within the correlation consistent family of basis sets. A persistent, slowly decaying ringing pattern in the C2 energy series was tracked out to MP155. Finally, new energy series were generated and analyzed through MP167 for Cl− and MP39 for Ar and HCl. The MPn energy and property series variously display rapid or slow convergence, monotonic or oscillatory decay, highly erratic or regular behavior, or early or late divergence, all de...

Wesley D. Allen

Papers

Popular Theoretical Methods Predict Benzene and Arenes To Be Nonplanar

High-order excitations in state-universal and state-specific multireference coupled cluster theories: model systems.

Definitive Ab Initio Studies of Model SN2 Reactions CH3X+F− (X=F, Cl, CN, OH, SH, NH2, PH2)

On the ab initio determination of higher-order force constants at nonstationary reference geometries

Is Mo/ller–Plesset perturbation theory a convergent ab initio method?