Semiclassical nonadiabatic dynamics using a mixed wave-function representation

Nonadiabatic effects in quantum dynamics are described using a mixed polar/coordinate space representation of the wave function. The polar part evolves on dynamically determined potential surfaces that have diabatic and adiabatic potentials as limiting cases of weak localized and strong extended diabatic couplings. The coordinate space part, generalized to a matrix form, describes transitions between the surfaces. Choice of the effective potentials for the polar part and partitioning of the wave function enables one to represent the total wave function in terms of smooth components that can be accurately propagated semiclassically using the approximate quantum potential and small basis sets. Examples are given for two-state one-dimensional problems that model chemical reactions that demonstrate the capabilities of the method for various regimes of nonadiabatic dynamics.     

Half-projected Hartree–Fock natural orbitals for defining CAS–SCF active spaces

We have extended the range of systems to which the half-projected Hartree–Fock (HPHF ) method has been applied, including the triplet state of the wave function. In our implementation, DIIS overcomes the convergence difficulties reported in earlier studies. HPHF allows generation of a symmetry-broken wave function in regions of the potential energy surface where the RHF wave function is triplet-stable. The fractionally occupied natural orbitals (FONOS ) of the HPHF wave function are good starting vectors for CAS –SCF calculations. A CAS –SCF in the space defined by the HPHF FONOS should be used instead of the unrestricted natural orbital CAS –SCF method in regions of triplet stability and for small active space problems. We draw extensive comparisons between the results of both the UNO –CAS and HPNO –CAS methods and those of full CAS –SCF calculations. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A diabatic representation including both valence nonadiabatic interactions and spin-orbit effects for reaction dynamics

A diabatic representation is convenient in the study of electronically nonadiabatic chemical reactions because the diabatic energies and couplings are smooth functions of the nuclear coordinates and the couplings are scalar quantities. A method called the fourfold way was devised in our group to generate diabatic representations for spin-free electronic states. One drawback of diabatic states computed from the spin-free Hamiltonian, called a valence diabatic representation, for systems in which spin-orbit coupling cannot be ignored is that the couplings between the states are not zero in asymptotic regions, leading to difficulties in the calculation of reaction probabilities and other properties by semiclassical dynamics methods. Here we report an extension of the fourfold way to construct diabatic representations suitable for spin-coupled systems. In this article we formulate the method for the case of even-electron systems that yield pairs of fragments with doublet spin multiplicity. For this type of system, we introduce the further simplification of calculating the triplet diabatic energies in terms of the singlet diabatic energies via Slater's rules and assuming constant ratios of Coulomb to exchange integrals. Furthermore, the valence diabatic couplings in the triplet manifold are taken equal to the singlet ones. An important feature of the method is the introduction of scaling functions, as they allow one to deal with multibond reactions without having to include high-energy diabatic states. The global transformation matrix to the new diabatic representation, called the spin-valence diabatic representation, is constructed as the product of channel-specific transformation matrices, each one taken as the product of an asymptotic transformation matrix and a scaling function that depends on ratios of the spin-orbit splitting and the valence splittings. Thus the underlying basis functions are recoupled into suitable diabatic basis functions in a manner that provides a multibond generalization of the switch between Hund's cases in diatomic spectroscopy. The spin-orbit matrix elements in this representation are taken equal to their atomic values times a scaling function that depends on the internuclear distances. The spin-valence diabatic potential energy matrix is suitable for semiclassical dynamics simulations. Diagonalization of this matrix produces the spin-coupled adiabatic energies. For the sake of illustration, diabatic potential energy matrices are constructed along bond-fission coordinates for the HBr and the BrCH(2)Cl molecules. Comparison of the spin-coupled adiabatic energies obtained from the spin-valence diabatics with those obtained by ab initio calculations with geometry-dependent spin-orbit matrix elements shows that the new method is sufficiently accurate for practical purposes. The method formulated here should be most useful for systems with a large number of atoms, especially heavy atoms, and/or a large number of spin-coupled electronic states.     

Combined CI–HY studies of atomic states. II. Compact wave functions for the be ground state

Combined CI –HY method techniques have been employed in obtaining a 57-term CI –HY wave function with an energy of ?14.66632 a.u. A method due to Brown has been adopted for obtaining this wave function and various shorter expansions. A 44-term expansion with an energy of ?14.66606 a.u. is analyzed in terms of various pair effects, and qualitative arguments are presented for understanding these effects.     

Diabatic surfaces which permute into one another

Some of the problems, discussed recently, with the idea that every molecule has a structure can be removed by adopting the idea that some molecules have several structures with probabilities of transfer between them. This is supported theoretically by using diabatic energy surfaces and wave functions. Since these are not easy to define in general, their definition is given in the special case where the surfaces permute into one another. Two kinds of permutation operations are required. The analysis is given more fully for two intersecting diabatic surfaces. The analogy to the double-valued property of the wave function near a conical intersection is given.     

On the construction of diabatic and adiabatic potential energy surfaces based on ab initio valence bond theory

A theoretical model is presented for deriving effective diabatic states based on ab initio valence bond self-consistent field (VBSCF) theory by reducing the multiconfigurational VB Hamiltonian into an effective two-state model. We describe two computational approaches for the optimization of the effective diabatic configurations, resulting in two ways of interpreting such effective diabatic states. In the variational diabatic configuration (VDC) method, the energies of the diabatic states are variationally minimized. In the consistent diabatic configuration (CDC) method, both the configuration coefficients and orbital coefficients are simultaneously optimized to minimize the adiabatic ground-state energy in VBSCF calculations. In addition, we describe a mixed molecular orbital and valence bond (MOVB) approach to construct the CDC diabatic and adiabatic states for a chemical reaction. Note that the VDC-MOVB method has been described previously. Employing the symmetric S(N)2 reaction between NH(3) and CH(3)NH(3)(+) as a test system, we found that the results from ab initio VBSCF and from ab initio MOVB calculations using the same basis set are in good agreement, suggesting that the computationally efficient MOVB method is a reasonable model for VB simulations of condensed phase reactions. The results indicate that CDC and VDC diabatic states converge, respectively, to covalent and ionic states as the molecular geometries are distorted from the minimum of the respective diabatic state along the reaction coordinate. Furthermore, the resonance energy that stabilizes the energy of crossing between the two diabatic states, resulting in the transition state of the adiabatic ground-state reaction, has a strong dependence on the overlap integral between the two diabatic states and is a function of both the exchange integral and the total diabatic ground-state energy.     

Two-state model based on the block-localized wave function method

The block-localized wave function (BLW) method is a variant of ab initio valence bond method but retains the efficiency of molecular orbital methods. It can derive the wave function for a diabatic (resonance) state self-consistently and is available at the Hartree-Fock (HF) and density functional theory (DFT) levels. In this work we present a two-state model based on the BLW method. Although numerous empirical and semiempirical two-state models, such as the Marcus-Hush two-state model, have been proposed to describe a chemical reaction process, the advantage of this BLW-based two-state model is that no empirical parameter is required. Important quantities such as the electronic coupling energy, structural weights of two diabatic states, and excitation energy can be uniquely derived from the energies of two diabatic states and the adiabatic state at the same HF or DFT level. Two simple examples of formamide and thioformamide in the gas phase and aqueous solution were presented and discussed. The solvation of formamide and thioformamide was studied with the combined ab initio quantum mechanical and molecular mechanical Monte Carlo simulations, together with the BLW-DFT calculations and analyses. Due to the favorable solute-solvent electrostatic interaction, the contribution of the ionic resonance structure to the ground state of formamide and thioformamide significantly increases, and for thioformamide the ionic form is even more stable than the covalent form. Thus, thioformamide in aqueous solution is essentially ionic rather than covalent. Although our two-state model in general underestimates the electronic excitation energies, it can predict relative solvatochromic shifts well. For instance, the intense pi-->pi* transition for formamide upon solvation undergoes a redshift of 0.3 eV, compared with the experimental data (0.40-0.5 eV).     

Ab initio MRD–CI calculations on cubane (neutral,carbocation, carboanion) and dissociation of nitrocubanes based on localized orbitals

Ab initio MRD –CI calculations based on localized orbitals were carried out for cubane (neutral, carbocation, carboanion) both in our customary MODPOT basis set and in an all-electron 4–31G basis set. The calculated MRD –CI charge distributions on C1 (the skeletal atom from which the H^? or H⁺ was removed) (ab initio MODPOT neutral 4.221, carbocation 3.796, carboanion 4.282; all-electron 4–31G neutral 6.171, carbocation 5.717, carboanion 6.078) indicate that the + or - charge does not remain localized on C1 but redistributes itself. This has significant implications for preparative reactions of energetically substituted cubanes. The MRD –CI population analyses differ somewhat from the SCF population analyses, especially in the calculated total overlap populations. To investigate this effect on electrostatic molecular potential contour (EMPC ) maps generated from SCF or MRD –CI wave functions, we wrote additional routines to calculate EMPC maps from MRD –CI wave functions. The EMPC maps generated from SCF or MRD –CI wave functions are different if the molecule needs an MRD –CI multideterminant wave function to describe it adequately. The EMPC map is a one-electron property. One-electron properties are derived from the 1-matrix. The 1-matrix is different for SCF or MRD –CI wave functions. Thus, all the one-electron properties (EMPC maps, population analyses, bond deviation indices, etc.) are different when calculated from SCF or MRD –CI wave functions if MRD –CI wave functions are necessary to describe a system properly. We calculate these one-electron properties from the 1-matrix from the final natural orbitals. Our preliminary calculations for the dissociation pathway indicate it takes more energy to dissociate a bond in 1-nitrocubane than in octanitrocubane. Even in their ground electronic states at equilibrium geometry, both 1-nitrocubane and octanitrocubane require MRD –CI wave functions to describe them properly. The c² of the single determinant SCF wave function is only 0.8401 for 1-nitrocubane and 0.8300 for octanitrocubane. There are contributions from skeletal excitations as there are for cubane itself as well as excitations involving the nitrogroup. As the bond in nitrocubane is dissociated to 8.00 bohrs, the c² of the SCF contribution drops to only 0.4606 (1-nitrocubane) and 0.4445 (octanitrocubane). At this C₁? N₁ intermolecular distance, the largest excitations are in the C₁? N₁ bond: (C₁? N₁)² → (C₁? N₁*)², (C₁? N₁) → (C₁? N₁*). We also calculated the first electronically excited state for the dissociation pathway for selected points for both 1-nitrocubane and octanitrocubane.     

块定域波函数方法及其应用

提出了块定域波函数方法以定量分析分子内的电子定域现象或分子间的电荷传递效应。对于一个假想的严格定域的分子,我们通过将全部的电子和基轨道配分成几个子空间来构造其相应的波函数。其中每一个分子轨道只对某一个子空间展开,各子空间内的分子轨道相互正交,但不同子空间内的分子轨道间是非正交的。Hartree-Fock波函数和块定域波函数之间的能量之差即为分子内的电子定域能或分子间的电荷传递能。我们应用块定域波函数方法讨论了丁二烯分子中的旋转势垒。     

Charge transfer in the electron donor-acceptor complex BH3NH3

As a simple yet strongly binding electron donor-acceptor (EDA) complex, BH(3)NH(3) serves as a good example to study the electron pair donor-acceptor complexes. We employed both the ab initio valence bond (VB) and block-localized wave function (BLW) methods to explore the electron transfer from NH(3) to BH(3). Conventionally, EDA complexes have been described by two diabatic states: one neutral state and one ionic charge-transferred state. Ab initio VB self-consistent field (VBSCF) computations generate the energy profiles of the two diabatic states together with the adiabatic (ground) state. Our calculations evidently demonstrated that the electron transfer between NH(3) and BH(3) falls in the abnormal regime where the reorganization energy is less than the exoergicity of the reaction. The nature of the NH(3)-BH(3) interaction is probed by an energy decomposition scheme based on the BLW method. We found that the variation of the charge-transfer energy with the donor-acceptor distance is insensitive to the computation levels and basis sets, but the estimation of the amount of electron transferred heavily depends on the population analysis procedures. The recent resurgence of interest in the nature of the rotation barrier in ethane prompted us to analyze the conformational change of BH(3)NH(3), which is an isoelectronic system with ethane. We found that the preference of the staggered structure over the eclipsed structure of BH(3)NH(3) is dominated by the Pauli exchange repulsion.     

Direct calculation of coupled diabatic potential-energy surfaces for ammonia and mapping of a four-dimensional conical intersection seam

We used multiconfiguration quasidegenerate perturbation theory and the fourfold-way direct diabatization scheme to calculate ab initio potential-energy surfaces at 3600 nuclear geometries of NH3. The calculations yield the adiabatic and diabatic potential-energy surfaces for the ground and first electronically excited singlet states and also the diabatic coupling surfaces. The diabatic surfaces and coupling were fitted analytically to functional forms to obtain a permutationally invariant 2 x 2 diabatic potential-energy matrix. An analytic representation of the adiabatic potential-energy surfaces is then obtained by diagonalizing the diabatic potential-energy matrix. The analytic representation of the surfaces gives an analytic representation of the four-dimensional conical intersection seam which is discussed in detail.     

Méthode des Biorbitales: Application Préliminaire au Calcul de l'Energie de l'Etat Fondamental de l'Atome de Beryllium

The ground-state electronic energy of Be is calculated using the method of biorbitals (SCF –BI ). In this method the wave function is represented by an antisymmetrized product of identical pair functions. The basic set used to develop the biorbitals consists of the Watson s and p orbitals. The pair function is presumed to describe a singlet pair state. The energy associated with this function is minimized using a steepest descent procedure. A value of 0.0414 a.u. was found for the correlation energy, which is 44% of the total correlation energy. The SCF –BI method is compared with the CI method. The relationships are established between the expansion coefficients of both methods. The occupation numbers of orbitals are calculated.     

Adiabatic states derived from a spin-coupled diabatic transformation: semiclassical trajectory study of photodissociation of HBr and the construction of potential curves for LiBr+

The development of spin-coupled diabatic representations for theoretical semiclassical treatments of photodissociation dynamics is an important practical goal, and some of the assumptions required to carry this out may be validated by applications to simple systems. With this objective, we report here a study of the photodissociation dynamics of the prototypical HBr system using semiclassical trajectory methods. The valence (spin-free) potential energy curves and the permanent and transition dipole moments were computed using high-level ab initio methods and were transformed to a spin-coupled diabatic representation. The spin-orbit coupling used in the transformation was taken as that of atomic bromine at all internuclear distances. Adiabatic potential energy curves, nonadiabatic couplings and transition dipole moments were then obtained from the diabatic ones and were used in all the dynamics calculations. Nonadiabatic photodissociation probabilities were computed using three semiclassical trajectory methods, namely, coherent switching with decay of mixing (CSDM), fewest switches with time uncertainty (FSTU), and its recently developed variant with stochastic decoherence (FTSU/SD), each combined with semiclassical sampling of the initial vibrational state. The calculated branching fraction to the higher fine-structure level of the bromine atom is in good agreement with experiment and with more complete theoretical treatments. The present study, by comparing our new calculations to wave packet calculations with distance-dependent ab initio spin-orbit coupling, validates the semiclassical trajectory methods, the semiclassical initial state sample scheme, and the use of a distance-independent spin-orbit coupling for future applications to polyatomic photodissociation. Finally, using LiBr(+) as a model system, it is shown that accurate spin-coupled potential curves can also be constructed for odd-electron systems using the same strategy as for HBr.     

A Three-State Model for Electronic Transitions Represented in a Generalized Diabatic Approach

We describe the chemical change between two diabatic closed-shell states as an electronic transition mediated by two factors: a bound diabatic transition state and the electromagnetic field. Using a three-state model for bond breaking, we compute the amplitudes of the total quantum state on the diabatic reactant, product, and transition states as a function of the external field. Changes in the total electronic state appear as sharp transitions between diabatic basis functions for particular configurations of the set of external positive charges. Depending on the diabatic states and the external field, the model predicts the possible occurrence of energy barriers for breaking or forming covalent bonds.     

Full configuration interaction for the benzyl radical

The electronic structure of the benzyl radical in its ground state has been computed using a model Hamiltonian due to Pariser–Parr with full configuration interaction as well as with different truncated configurational sets built on SCF open-shell orbitals. The correlation energy corresponding to this model was found to be equal to –0.929722 eV. With the singly excited configurations only 18% of this energy is taken into account. By extending the basis to include the doubly excited configurations one can account for 94% of the correlation energy. An analysis of the accuracy of the proton hyperfine splitting calculation caused by inaccurate computation of the wave function is given. If only singly and even doubly excited configurations are taken into account one cannot hope to obtain splittings with an accuracy of more than 0.5 g. Inclusion of triply excited configurations lowers this error by one order. In addition, the use of the simple McConnell relation may lead to an error in splitting calculations of no less than 1.5 g.     

Approximate method for calculation of electron transition probability for simple outer-sphere electrochemical reactions

The probability of an elementary act in an outer-sphere electrochemical electron transfer reaction is calculated with arbitrary values of the parameter of reactant-electrode electron interaction for diabatic freeenergy surfaces of the parabolic form. The dependence of effective transmission coefficient on the Landau-Zener parameter is found. Interpolation formulas are obtained that describe this dependence and allow calculating the electron transition probability using the results of quantum chemical calculations of the electronic matrix element as a function of distance.