Intruder State Problem Research Articles

Quasi-degenerate extension of local N-electron valence state perturbation theory with pair-natural orbital method based on localized virtual molecular orbitals.

Chemical phenomena involving near-degenerate electronic states, such as conical intersections or avoided crossing, can be properly described using quasi-degenerate perturbation theory. This study proposed a highly scalable quasi-degenerate second-order N-electron valence state perturbation theory (QD-NEVPT2) using the local pair-natural orbital (PNO) method. Our recent study showed an efficient implementation of the PNO-based state-specific NEVPT2 method using orthonormal localized virtual molecular orbitals (LVMOs) as an intermediate local basis. This study derived the state-coupling (or off-diagonal) terms to implement QD-NEVPT2 in an alternative manner to enhance efficiency based on the internally contracted basis and PNO overlap matrices between different references. To facilitate further acceleration, a local resolution-of-the-identity (RI) three-index integral generation algorithm was developed using LMOs and LVMOs. Although the NEVPT2 theory is considered to be less susceptible to the intruder-state problem (ISP), this study revealed that it can easily suffer from ISP when calculating high-lying excited states. We ameliorated this instability using the imaginary level shift technique. The PNO-QD-NEVPT2 calculations were performed on small organic molecules for the 30 lowest-lying states, as well as photoisomerization involving the conical intersection of 1,1-dimethyldibenzo[b,f] silepin with a cis-stilbene skeleton. These calculations revealed that the PNO-QD-NEVPT2 method yielded negligible errors compared to the canonical QD-NEVPT2 results. Furthermore, we tested its applicability to a large photoisomerization system using the green fluorescent protein model and the ten-state calculation of the large transition metal complex, showcasing that off-diagonal elements can be evaluated at a relatively low cost.

Intruder-free cumulant-truncated driven similarity renormalization group second-order multireference perturbation theory.

Accurate multireference electronic structure calculations are important for constructing potential energy surfaces. Still, even in the case of low-scaling methods, their routine use is limited by the steep growth of the computational and storage costs as the active space grows. This is primarily due to the occurrence of three- and higher-body density matrices or, equivalently, their cumulants. This work examines the effect of various cumulant truncation schemes on the accuracy of the driven similarity renormalization group second-order multireference perturbation theory. We test four different levels of three-body reduced density cumulant truncations that set different classes of cumulant elements to zero. Our test cases include the singlet-triplet gap of CH2, the potential energy curves of the XΣg+1 and AΣu+3 states of N2, and the singlet-triplet splittings of oligoacenes. Our results show that both relative and absolute errors introduced by these cumulant truncations can be as small as 0.5kcal mol-1 or less. At the same time, the amount of memory required is reduced from O(NA6) to O(NA5), where NA is the number of active orbitals. No additional regularization is needed to prevent the intruder state problem in the cumulant-truncated second-order driven similarity renormalization group multireference perturbation theory methods.

A Similarity Renormalization Group Approach to Green's Function Methods.

The family of Green's function methods based on the GW approximation has gained popularity in the electronic structure theory thanks to its accuracy in weakly correlated systems combined with its cost-effectiveness. Despite this, self-consistent versions still pose challenges in terms of convergence. A recent study [Monino and Loos J. Chem. Phys. 2022, 156, 231101.] has linked these convergence issues to the intruder-state problem. In this work, a perturbative analysis of the similarity renormalization group (SRG) approach is performed on Green's function methods. The SRG formalism enables us to derive, from first-principles, the expression of a naturally static and Hermitian form of the self-energy that can be employed in quasiparticle self-consistent GW (qsGW) calculations. The resulting SRG-based regularized self-energy significantly accelerates the convergence of qsGW calculations, slightly improves the overall accuracy, and is straightforward to implement in existing code.

Regularized CASPT2: an Intruder-State-Free Approach.

In this work we present a new approach to fix the intruder-state problem (ISP) in CASPT2 based on σp regularization. The resulting σp-CASPT2 method is compared to previous techniques, namely, the real and imaginary level shifts, on a theoretical basis and by performing a series of systematic calculations. The analysis is focused on two aspects, the effectiveness of σp-CASPT2 in removing the ISP and the sensitivity of the approach with respect to the input parameter. We found that σp-CASPT2 compares favorably with respect to previous approaches and that different versions, σ1-CASPT2 and σ2-CASPT2, have different potential application domains. This analysis also reveals the unsuitability of the real level shift technique as a general way to avoid the intruder-state problem.

Unphysical discontinuities, intruder states and regularization in GW methods.

By recasting the non-linear frequency-dependent GW quasiparticle equation into a linear eigenvalue problem, we explain the appearance of multiple solutions and unphysical discontinuities in various physical quantities computed within the GW approximation. Considering the GW self-energy as an effective Hamiltonian, it is shown that these issues are key signatures of strong correlation in the (N ± 1)-electron states and can be directly related to the intruder state problem. A simple and efficient regularization procedure inspired by the similarity renormalization group is proposed to avoid such issues and speed up the convergence of partially self-consistent GW calculations.

A new intermediate Hamiltonian Fock-space coupled-cluster formalism for the three-valence sector

The single-reference coupled-cluster (CC) method is one of the most efficient approaches for describing electron correlation effects in atoms and molecules but its successful application is limited to states dominated by a single Slater determinant. In cases where several determinants dominate the wave function expansion, the multi-reference (MR) CC formulations are required. They usually use the effective Hamiltonian formalism which allows dealing with two types of electron correlation appearing in the MR cases: nondynamic and dynamic. There are two MR-CC formulations of this type: the Hilbert space CC method and the Fock-space (FS) one. In the paper, a version of the FS-CC method designated for the description of systems with three-valence electrons is being considered. The idea of the intermediate Hamiltonian (IH) reformulation of the standard FS-CC method, which simplifies the calculations and avoids the intruder state problem, is discussed in this context. A new IH-FS-CC approach is presented which takes advantage of the redefinition of the normal ordering of the FS cluster expansion introduced by Lindgren. The redefinition significantly simplifies the IH-FS-CC formalism and lowers the computational cost of the calculations. The advantages of the new IH formulation are discussed in detail for the case of the FS-CC method in which the lowest-order cluster operators are included in all sectors of the Fock-space, including the three-valence one.

Approximations of density matrices in N-electron valence state second-order perturbation theory (NEVPT2). I. Revisiting the NEVPT2 construction.

Over the last decade, the second-order N-electron valence state perturbation theory (NEVPT2) has developed into a widely used multireference perturbation method. To apply NEVPT2 to systems with large active spaces, the computational bottleneck is the construction of the fourth-order reduced density matrix. Both its generation and storage become quickly problematic beyond the usual maximum active space of about 15 active orbitals. To reduce the computational cost of handling fourth-order density matrices, the cumulant approximation (CU) has been proposed in several studies. A more conventional strategy to address the higher-order density matrices is the pre-screening approximation (PS), which is the default one in the ORCA program package since 2010. In the present work, the performance of the CU, PS, and extended PS (EPS) approximations for the fourth-order density matrices is compared. Following a pedagogical introduction to NEVPT2, contraction schemes, as well as the approximations to density matrices, and the intruder state problem are discussed. The CU approximation, while potentially leading to large computational savings, virtually always leads to intruder states. With the PS approximation, the computational savings are more modest. However, in conjunction with conservative cutoffs, it produces stable results. The EPS approximation to the fourth-order density matrices can reproduce very accurate NEVPT2 results without any intruder states. However, its computational cost is not much lower than that of the canonical algorithm. Moreover, we found that a good indicator of intrude states problems in any approximation to high order density matrices is the eigenspectra of the Koopmans matrices.

Second-Order Perturbation Theory with Spin-Symmetry-Projected Hartree-Fock.

We propose two different schemes for second-order perturbation theory with spin-projected Hartree-Fock. Both schemes employ the same ansatz for the first-order wave function, which is a linear combination of spin-projected configurations. The first scheme is based on the normal-ordered projected Hamiltonian, which is partitioned into the Fock-like component and the remaining two-particle-like contribution. In the second scheme, the generalized Fock operator is used to construct a spin-free zeroth-order Hamiltonian. To avoid the intruder state problem, we adopt the level-shift techniques frequently used in other multireference perturbation theories. We describe both real and imaginary shift schemes and compare their performances on small systems. Our results clearly demonstrate the superiority of the second perturbation scheme with an imaginary shift over other proposed approaches in various aspects, giving accurate potential energy curves, spectroscopic constants, and singlet-triplet splitting energies. We also apply these methods to the calculation of spin gaps of transition-metal complexes as well as the potential energy curve of the chromium dimer.

A simplified account of the correlation effects to bond breaking processes: The Brillouin-Wigner perturbation theory using a multireference formulation

Adaptation of improved virtual orbital complete active space configuration interaction functions in state-specific multireference perturbation theory motivated by the Brillouin-Wigner perturbation scheme using Møller-Plesset multipartitioning is examined. The method, denoted as IVO-BWMRPT, focuses on only the root of principal interest at a time using single-root parameterization of Jeziorski-Monkhorst ansatz within the frame of an effective Hamiltonian. This approach yields size-extensive energy and avoids intruder-state problems in a natural manner. It allows relaxation of the reference space wave function in the presence of the perturbation which produces an important differential effect on the energy and cannot be neglected for quasidegenerate electronic states. The method has been tested against nontrivial situations such as the Be + H2 insertion profile along with the energy surfaces of FH and X2 (X = F, Cl, and Br), in which conventional single-reference methods generally fail, exhibiting very encouraging findings. We also consider the energy surfaces of ethylene (by breaking the π bond as well as the CC bond) and for the twisting of tetramethyleneethane. IVO-BWMRPT represents a rather balanced protocol for the description of molecules at a wide range of geometries, including stretched or dissociating bonds. Close agreement of our estimates with the reference values provides a useful measure for the success of the IVO-BWMRPT method to treat strongly correlated systems. Our results for TME show that the singlet state always lies below the triplet state for different conformations. The IVO-BWMRPT furnishes a compact and correct representation of the MR-wave function, and hence, a large variety of quasidegenerate situations can be accommodated within the method.

Multireference Theories of Electron Correlation Based on the Driven Similarity Renormalization Group.

The driven similarity renormalization group (DSRG) provides an alternative way to address the intruder state problem in quantum chemistry. In this review, we discuss recent developments of multireference methods based on the DSRG. We provide a pedagogical introduction to the DSRG and its various extensions and discuss its formal properties in great detail. In addition, we report several illustrative applications of the DSRG to molecular systems.

Perturbation Expansion of Internally Contracted Coupled-Cluster Theory up to Third Order.

The internally contracted multireference coupled-cluster (icMRCC) method is analyzed through third order in perturbation theory. Up to second order, the icMRCC perturbation expansion is equivalent to that of the standard Rayleigh-Schrödinger perturbation theory, which is based on a linear ansatz for the wave function, and the resulting theory is, depending on the employed zeroth-order Hamiltonian, equivalent to either second-order complete active space perturbation theory (CASPT2), N-electron valence perturbation theory (NEVPT2), or Fink's retention of the excitation degree perturbation theory (REPT2). At third order, the icMRCC perturbation expansion features additional terms in comparison to the Rayleigh-Schrödinger perturbation theory, but these are shown to be nearly negligibly small by both analytic arguments and numerical examples. Considering these systematic cancellations, however, may be important in future work on approximations to icMRCC theory. In addition, we provide an extensive set of tests of the second and third-order perturbation theories based on three different zeroth-order Hamiltonians, namely, the projected effective Fock operator as used for CASPT, the Dyall Hamiltonian as used for NEVPT, and the Fink Hamiltonian used for REPT. While the third-order variant of REPT often gives absolute energies that are rather close to values from higher level calculations, the results for relative energies and spectroscopic constants such as harmonic frequencies, give a less clear picture and a general conclusion about any best zeroth-order Hamiltonian does not emerge from our data. For small active spaces, REPT is rather prone to intruder state problems.

Crystal Field Splittings in Lanthanide Complexes: Inclusion of Correlation Effects beyond Second Order Perturbation Theory.

State-averaged complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) calculations and a subsequent spin-orbit calculation mixing the CASSCF wave functions (CASSCF/state-interaction with spin-orbit coupling) is the conventional approach used for ab initio calculations of crystal-field splittings and magnetic properties of lanthanide complexes. However, this approach neglects dynamical correlation. Complete active space second-order perturbation theory (CASPT2) can be used to account for dynamical correlation but suffers from the well-known problems of multireference perturbation theory, e.g., intruder state problems. Variational multireference configuration interaction (MRCI) calculations do not show these problems but are usually not feasible due to the large size of real lanthanide complexes. Here, we present a quasi-local projected internally contracted MRCI approach which makes MRCI calculations of lanthanide complexes feasible and allows assessing the influence of dynamical correlation beyond second-order perturbation theory. We apply the method to two well-studied molecules, namely, [Er{N(SiMe3)2}3] and {C(NH2)3}5[Er(CO3)4]·11H2O.

Combined complete active space configuration interaction and perturbation theory applied to conformational energy prototypes: Rotation and inversion barriers

A second-order multireference perturbation theory, termed as IVO-SSMRPT which allows the use of CASCI reference wave functions with improved virtual orbitals (IVO) for capturing static correlation and state-specific parameterization of the state-universal electronic wave function in an attempt to account for dynamic correlation has been utilized in an investigation of the torsional properties of ethylene, silaethylene, hydrogen peroxide, hydrazine, and oxalyl chloride. We also calculate the barrier to inversion of ammonia. IVO-SSMRPT is robust and useful to scan energy surfaces as it avoids the intruder-state problem, a troubling aspect of various established MRPT methods, without exploiting level-shifting or increasing the size of the active space. We find that IVO-SSMRPT with the use of a relatively small active space and basis set can be compared with recent reference estimates which are reproduced within the expected precision indicating the method is useful for the study of rotation and inversion barriers of challenging molecules.

Relativistic state-specific multireference coupled cluster theory description for bond-breaking energy surfaces.

A four-component (4c) relativistic state specific multireference coupled cluster (4c-SSMRCC) method has been developed and applied to compute the ground state spectroscopic constants of Ag2, Cu2, Au2, and I2. The reference functions used in these calculations are obtained using computationally inexpensive improved virtual orbital-complete active space configuration interaction scheme. Rigorous size-extensivity and insensitivity towards the intruder state problem make our method an interesting choice for the calculation of the dissociation energy surface. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first implementation of the SSMRCC within the relativistic framework. The overall agreement of our results, employing the smallest model space, with both theoretical and experimental reference values indicates that the 4c-SSMRCC method can be fruitfully used to describe electronic structures and associated properties of systems containing heavy elements. We observe a relativistic bond stabilization for the coinage metal dimers while the I-I bond is weakened by the relativistic effects.

Towards numerically robust multireference theories: The driven similarity renormalization group truncated to one- and two-body operators.

The first nonperturbative version of the multireference driven similarity renormalization group (MR-DSRG) theory [C. Li and F. A. Evangelista, J. Chem. Theory Comput. 11, 2097 (2015)] is introduced. The renormalization group structure of the MR-DSRG equations ensures numerical robustness and avoidance of the intruder-state problem, while the connected nature of the amplitude and energy equations guarantees size consistency and extensivity. We approximate the MR-DSRG equations by keeping only one- and two-body operators and using a linearized recursive commutator approximation of the Baker-Campbell-Hausdorff expansion [T. Yanai and G. K.-L. Chan, J. Chem. Phys. 124, 194106 (2006)]. The resulting linearized MR-DSRG scheme with one- and two-body operators [MR-LDSRG(2)] contains only 39 terms and scales as O(N(2)NP (2)NH (2)) where NH, NP, and N correspond to the number of hole, particle, and total orbitals, respectively. Benchmark MR-LDSRG(2) computations on the hydrogen fluoride and molecular nitrogen binding curves and the singlet-triplet splitting of p-benzyne yield results comparable in accuracy to those from multireference configuration interaction, Mukherjee multireference coupled cluster theory, and internally contracted multireference coupled cluster theory.

Multireference Driven Similarity Renormalization Group: A Second-Order Perturbative Analysis.

We introduce a multireference version of the driven similarity renormalization group (DSRG) approach [ Evangelista , F. A. J. Chem. Phys. 2014 , 141 , 054109 ] based on a generalized reference wave function and operator normal ordering [ Kutzelnigg , W. ; Mukherjee , D. J. Chem. Phys. 1997 , 107 , 432 ]. We perform a perturbative analysis of the corresponding equations at second order and derive a novel multireference perturbation theory, termed DSRG-MRPT2. The DSRG-MRPT2 energy equation can be written in a simple and compact form and can be solved via a noniterative procedure that requires at most the three-body density cumulant of the reference. Importantly, even at the perturbation level, the multireference DSRG is free from the intruder-state problem. We propose an optimal range of the DSRG flow parameter that consistently yields reliable potential energy curves with minimal nonparallelism error. We find that the DSRG-MRPT2 can describe the potential energy curves of HF and N2, and the singlet-triplet gap of p-benzyne with an accuracy similar to that of other multireference perturbation theories.

Intermediate Hamiltonian Fock Space Multireference Coupled Cluster Approach to Core Excitation Spectra.

The Fock space multireference coupled cluster (FSMRCC) method provides an efficient approach for the direct calculation of excitation energies. In intermediate Hamiltonian (IH-FSMRCC) formulation, the method is free from intruder state problems and associated convergence difficulties, even with a large model space. In this paper, we demonstrate that the IH-FSMRCC method with suitably chosen model space can be used for the accurate description of core excitation spectra of molecules, and our results are in excellent agreement with the experimental values. We have investigated the effect of choice of model space on the computed results. Unlike the equation-of-motion (EOM)-based method, the IH-FSMRCC does not require any special technique for convergence and in singles and doubles approximation gives a performance comparable to that of the standard EOMEE-CCSD method, even better in some of the cases.

Potential energy curves via double electron affinity calculations: example of NaLi molecule†

The recently developed method designed to perform calculations for the double electron attached (DEA) states has been applied to study potential energy curves (PECs) for the ground and excited states of the NaLi molecule. The method is based on the multireference coupled cluster scheme formulated in the Fock space (FS) formalism for the (2,0) sector. To avoid the intruder state problems, the FS approach is realised within the framework of the intermediate Hamiltonian which generates an efficient size-extensive computational scheme. The DEA calculations can be applied to the double ionised system and then they provide results describing the neutral molecule. This is particularly advantageous in the studies of the PECs for the cases when the closed-shell molecule dissociates into open-shell fragments, but its double positive ion generates closed-shell parts. We used this strategy in the current work to generate the PECs for the ground and excited states of the NaLi molecule. In all cases, we were able to compute the smooth PECs for the whole range of interatomic distances from the equilibrium to the dissociation limit. In addition, spectroscopic characteristics of various electronic states are presented.

New implementation of the configuration-based multi-reference second order perturbation theory

We present an improved version of the configuration-based multi-reference second-order perturbation approach (CB-MRPT2) according to the formulation of Lindgren on perturbation theory of a degenerate model space. This version involves a reclassification of the perturbation functions and new algorithms to calculate matrix elements in the perturber energy expressions utilizing the graphical unitary group approach and the hole-particle symmetry. The diagonalize-then-perturb (DP), including Rayleigh-Schrödinger and Brillouin-Wigner, and diagonalize-then-perturb-then-diagonalize (DPD) modes have been implemented. The new CB-MRPT2 method is applied to several typical and interesting systems: (1) the vertical excitation energies for several states of CO and N(2), (2) energy comparison and timing of the ground state of C(4)H(6), (3) the quasi-degeneracy of states in LiF, (4) the intruder state problems of AgH, and (5) the relative energies of di-copper-oxygen-ammonia complex isomers. The results indicate that the computational accuracy and efficiency of the presented methods are competitive and intruder-free. It should be emphasized that the DPD method rectifies naturally the shortcomings of LiF potential energy curves constructed by the original second order complete active space perturbation theory (CASPT2), without having to recourse to the so-called state mixture. Unlike CASPT2, the new methods give the same energy ordering for the two di-copper-oxygen-ammonia isomers as the previous multi-reference configuration interaction with single and double excitations methods. The new CB-MRPT2 method is shown to be a useful tool to study small to medium-sized systems.

Metal-to-metal charge-transfer transitions: reliable excitation energies from ab initio calculations

A computational strategy is presented to describe excited states, involving the transfer of an electron from one metallic site to a neighboring metal center, the so-called metal-to-metal charge-transfer (MMCT) states. An accurate ab initio treatment of these states in transition metal compounds is intrinsically difficult for both time-dependent density functional and wave function-based methods. The rather large dependence of the MMCT energies on the applied functional makes difficult to extract reliable estimates from density functional theory, while the standard multiconfigurational approach (complete active space SCF + second-order perturbation theory) leads to severe intruder state problems and unrealistic, negative energies. The analysis of the failure of the multiconfigurational approach shows that the state-average orbitals are biased toward the ground state and strongly deficient to describe the MMCT state. We propose a method to improve the orbitals by gradually approaching as much as possible the state-specific description of the MMCT state in the reference wave function for the second-order perturbation treatment of the dynamic electron correlation.