Quantum Monte Carlo calculations for ground and excited states

A brief overview of the diffusion quantum Monte Carlo method is given. We illustrate the application to ground‐state calculations by a study of the relative stability of carbon clusters near the crossover to fullerene stability, thereby determining the smallest stable fullerene. The application to excited states is illustrated via a study of excitonic states in small hydrogenated silicon clusters. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2001