Theoretical And Computational Developments In Modern Density Functional Theory

Modern day's electronic structure theory of molecules, solids, materials, biomolecules, etc., heavily depends on the astounding success of density functional theory (DFT). Ever since its inception, the theory has come a long way. Despite the fact that there are many disconcerting open questions yet to be answered, it has made a remarkable impact towards our understanding of increasingly larger and complex systems. This book presents some of the exciting, important, latest developments that took place in DFT, of late. The main focus lies on theoretical, computational and conceptual aspects including formalism, algorithm etc., with some applications.

The present status of Density Functional Theory (DFT), which has evolved as the main technique for the study of matter at the atomistic level, is described in this volume. Knowing the behavior of atoms and molecules provides a sure avenue for the design of new materials with specific features and properties in many areas of science and technology. A technique based on purely first principles allowing large savings in time and money greatly benefits the specialist or designer of new materials. The range of areas where DFT is applied has expanded and continues to do so. Any area where a molecular system is the center of attention can be studied using DFT.The scope of the 22 chapters in this book amply testifies to this.

Density Functional Theory (DFT) is currently receiving a great deal of attention as chemists come to realize its important role as a tool for chemistry. This book covers the theoretical principles of DFT, and details its application to several contemporary problems. All current techniques are covered, many are critically assessed, and some proposals for the future are reviewed. The book demonstrates that DFT is a practical solution to the problems standard ab initio methods have with chemical accuracy. The book is aimed at both the theoretical chemist and the experimentalist who want to relate their experiments to the governing theory. It will prove a useful and enduring reference work.

Of all the different areas in computational chemistry, density functional theory (DFT) enjoys the most rapid development. Even at the level of the local density approximation (LDA), which is computationally less demanding, DFT can usually provide better answers than Hartree-Fock formalism for large systems such as clusters and solids. For atoms and molecules, the results from DFT often rival those obtained by ab initio quantum chemistry, partly because larger basis sets can be used. Such encouraging results have in turn stimulated workers to further investigate the formal theory as well as the computational methodology of DFT.This volume contains ten contributions from active workers in DFT, covering topics from basic principles to methodology to applications. In the Foreword, Prof Walter Kohn gives his perspective on the recent advances in DFT. Because DFT is being developed in so many different directions, no single volume can provide a complete review of DFT. However, this volume will help both beginners and experimentalists to read the growing DFT literature more easily.

Of all the different areas in computational chemistry, density functional theory (DFT) enjoys the most rapid development. Even at the level of the local density approximation (LDA), which is computationally less demanding, DFT can usually provide better answers than Hartree-Fock formalism for large systems such as clusters and solids. For atoms and molecules, the results from DFT often rival those obtained by ab initio quantum chemistry, partly because larger basis sets can be used. Such encouraging results have in turn stimulated workers to further investigate the formal theory as well as the computational methodology of DFT. This Part II expands on the methodology and applications of DFT. Some of the chapters report on the latest developments (since the publication of Part I in 1995), while others extend the applications to wider range of molecules and their environments. Together, this and other recent review volumes on DFT show that DFT provides an efficient and accurate alternative to traditional quantum chemical methods. Such demonstration should hopefully stimulate frutiful developments in formal theory, better exchange-correlation functionals, and linear scaling methodology. Contents:On the Calculation of Energies and Optimised Geometries from Exchange-Correlation Potentials (D J Tozer & N C Handy)A Grid-Free Implementation of Density Functional Theory (J E Almlöf & Y C Zheng)Continuum Dielectric Models for the Solvent and Density Functional Theory: The State-of-the-Art (G D Luca et al.)On the Calculation of Multiplets (C A Daul et al.)Structural and Dynamical Features of Hydrogen Bonds from Conventional and Hybrid Density Functional Methods (C Adamo & V Barone)Chemistry by Density Functional Theory (C W Bauschlicher, Jr. et al.)The Self-Interaction Corrected Local Density Approximation Method (M A Whitehead)Index Readership: Researchers and graduate students in computational chemistry and computational physics. keywords:

This is a comprehensive overview of state-of-the-art computational methods based on orbital-free formulation of density functional theory completed by the most recent developments concerning the exact properties, approximations, and interpretations of the relevant quantities in density functional theory.The book is a compilation of contributions stemming from a series of workshops which had been taking place since 2002. It not only chronicles many of the latest developments but also summarises some of the more significant ones. The chapters are mainly reviews of sub-domains but also include original research.

Quantum mechanics can describe the detailed structure and behavior of matter, from electrons, atoms, and molecules, to the whole universe. It is one of the fields of knowledge that yield extraordinary precessions, limited only by the computational resources available. Among these methods is density functional theory (DFT), which permits one to solve the equations of quantum mechanics more efficiently than with any related method. The present volume represents the most comprehensive summary currently available in density functional theory and its applications in chemistry from atomic physics to molecular dynamics. DFT is currently being used by more than fifty percent of computational chemists.