Classical And Quantum Dynamics In Condensed Phase Simulations

The school held at Villa Marigola, Lerici, Italy, in July 1997 was very much an educational experiment aimed not just at teaching a new generation of students the latest developments in computer simulation methods and theory, but also at bringing together researchers from the condensed matter computer simulation community, the biophysical chemistry community and the quantum dynamics community to confront the shared problem: the development of methods to treat the dynamics of quantum condensed phase systems. This volume collects the lectures delivered there. Due to the focus of the school, the contributions divide along natural lines into two broad groups: (1) the most sophisticated forms of the art of computer simulation, including biased phase space sampling schemes, methods which address the multiplicity of time scales in condensed phase problems, and static equilibrium methods for treating quantum systems; (2) the contributions on quantum dynamics, including methods for mixing quantum and classical dynamics in condensed phase simulations and methods capable of treating all degrees of freedom quantum-mechanically. Contents:Barrier Crossing: Classical Theory of Rare but Important Events (D Chandler)Monte Carlo Simulations (D Frenkel)Molecular Dynamics Methods for the Enhanced Sampling of Phase Space (B J Berne)Constrained and Nonequilibrium Molecular Dynamics (G Ciccotti & M Ferrario)From Erying to Kramers: Computation of Diffusive Barrier Crossing Rates (M J Ruiz-Montero)Monte Carlo Methods for Sampling of Rare Event States (W Janke)Proton Transfer in Ice (D Marx)Nudged Elastic Band Method for Finding Minimum Energy Paths of Transitions (H Jónsson et al.)RAW Quantum Transition State Theory (G Mills et al.)Dynamics of Peptide Folding (R Elber et al.)Theoretical Studies of Activated Processes in Biological Ion Channels (B Roux & S Crouzy)The Semiclassical Initial Value Representation for Including Quantum Effects in Molecular Dynamics Simulations (W H Miller)Tunneling in the Condensed Phase: Barrier Crossing and Dynamical Control (N Makri)Feynman Path Centroid Methods for Condensed Phase Quantum Dynamics (G A Voth)Quantum Molecular Dynamics Using Wigner Representation (V S Filinov et al.)Nonadiabatic Molecular Dynamics Methods for Diffusion (D Laria et al.)and other papers Readership: Computational and statistical physicists. Keywords:Quantum;Molecular Dynamics;DynamicsReviews: “… this volume is a useful introduction to currently popular, and widely-used techniques in chemical and statistical physics. The authors are well-respected researchers in the field and the level is appropriate to graduate students and researchers.” Journal of Statistical Physics

Both classical and quantum mechanical methods are widely used to simulate the dynamics of chemical reactions and molecular motion. In recent work it has become possible to extend quantum dynamics calculations to larger systems, with up to five atoms and many vibrational/rotational states. Through faster and larger computers, enhancements of computational algorithms, and improvements in methodologies will allow quantum dynamical simulations of even larger systems, such extensions are expected to be rather slow and gradual. Thus, for the foreseeable future, classical trajectories are expected to remain a practical and general approach for simulating the dynamics of molecular processes. The seven chapters in this volume deal with: classical and quantum statistical mechanical simulations of the structures and thermodynamics of clusters; the correspondence between the classical and quantum mechanics of highly excited vibrational states; approximate quantum/classical approaches for simulating proton and electron transfer reactions in the condensed phase, and the transition state dynamics of A-B-C heavy-light-heavy systems; a comparison of classical and quantum mechanical calculations of properties of bimolecular reactions, ranging from state-to-state cross sections to thermal rate constants; and calssical and quantum dynamical studies of photon-induced processes on solid surfaces.

"this volume is a useful introduction to currently popular, and widely-used techniques in chemical and statistical physics. The authors are well-respected researchers in the field and the level is appropriate to graduate students and researchers".Journal of Statistical Physics, 1999

This comprehensive collection of lectures by leading experts in the field introduces and reviews all relevant computer simulation methods and their applications in condensed matter systems. Volume 1 is an in-depth introduction to a vast spectrum of computational techniques for statistical mechanical systems of condensed matter. Volume 2 is a collection of state-of-the-art surveys on numerical experiments carried out for a great number of systems.

The Encyclopedia of Physical Chemistry and Chemical Physics introduces possibly unfamiliar areas, explains important experimental and computational techniques, and describes modern endeavors. The encyclopedia quickly provides the basics, defines the scope of each subdiscipline, and indicates where to go for a more complete and detailed explanation. Particular attention has been paid to symbols and abbreviations to make this a user-friendly encyclopedia. Care has been taken to ensure that the reading level is suitable for the trained chemist or physicist. The encyclopedia is divided in three major sections: FUNDAMENTALS: the mechanics of atoms and molecules and their interactions, the macroscopic and statistical description of systems at equilibrium, and the basic ways of treating reacting systems. The contributions in this section assume a somewhat less sophisticated audience than the two subsequent sections. At least a portion of each article inevitably covers material that might also be found in a modern, undergraduate physical chemistry text. METHODS: the instrumentation and fundamental theory employed in the major spectroscopic techniques, the experimental means for characterizing materials, the instrumentation and basic theory employed in the study of chemical kinetics, and the computational techniques used to predict the static and dynamic properties of materials. APPLICATIONS: specific topics of current interest and intensive research. For the practicing physicist or chemist, this encyclopedia is the place to start when confronted with a new problem or when the techniques of an unfamiliar area might be exploited. For a graduate student in chemistry or physics, the encyclopedia gives a synopsis of the basics and an overview of the range of activities in which physical principles are applied to chemical problems. It will lead any of these groups to the salient points of a new field as rapidly as possible and gives pointers as to where to read about the topic in more detail.

This is the only series of volumes available that represents the cutting edge of research relative to advances in chemical physics. Provides the chemical physics field with a forum for critical, authoritative evaluations of advances in every area of the discipline. Continues to report recent advances with significant, up-to-date chapters. Contributing authors are internationally recognized researchers.

The role of quantum coherence in promoting the e ciency of the initial stages of photosynthesis is an open and intriguing question. Lee, Cheng, and Fleming, Science 316, 1462 (2007) The understanding and design of functional biomaterials is one of today’s grand challenge areas that has sparked an intense exchange between biology, materials sciences, electronics, and various other disciplines. Many new - velopments are underway in organic photovoltaics, molecular electronics, and biomimetic research involving, e. g. , arti cal light-harvesting systems inspired by photosynthesis, along with a host of other concepts and device applications. In fact, materials scientists may well be advised to take advantage of Nature’s 3. 8 billion year head-start in designing new materials for light-harvesting and electro-optical applications. Since many of these developments reach into the molecular domain, the - derstanding of nano-structured functional materials equally necessitates f- damental aspects of molecular physics, chemistry, and biology. The elementary energy and charge transfer processes bear much similarity to the molecular phenomena that have been revealed in unprecedented detail by ultrafast op- cal spectroscopies. Indeed, these spectroscopies, which were initially developed and applied for the study of small molecular species, have already evolved into an invaluable tool to monitor ultrafast dynamics in complex biological and materials systems. The molecular-level phenomena in question are often of intrinsically quantum mechanical character, and involve tunneling, non-Born- Oppenheimer e ects, and quantum-mechanical phase coherence.