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Physical review. B, Condensed matter

Generalized Hohenberg-Kohn theorem and effective Hamiltonian of a quantum system

Tai Kai Ng

Published Aug 1, 1991• 3 citations
Publisher

Abstract

It is proved that, for quantum systems with a nondegenerate ground state, there exists a one-to-one mapping in the Hohenberg-Kohn sense between any subset of the sets of parameters (functions) characterizing the Hamiltonian and a corresponding set of correlation functions that characterize the ground state of the system. Using this result, we study the problem of constructing an effective Hamiltonian out of known ground-state properties of a quantum system.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.44.2407

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It is proved that, for quantum systems with a nondegenerate ground state, there exists a one-to-one mapping in the Hohenberg-Kohn sense between any subset of the sets of parameters (functions) characterizing the Hamiltonian and a corresponding set of correlation functions that characterize the ground state of the system. Using this result, we study the problem of constructing an effective Hamiltonian out of known ground-state properties of a quantum system.
The Hohenberg-Kohn theorem is extended to the case that the external potential is nonlocal. It is shown that, in this more general case, a nondegenerate ground-state wave function is a universal functional of the one-particle density kernel $\ensuremath{\mu}(x,{x}^{\ensuremath{'}})$, but probably not of the particle density $n(\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{\mathrm{r}})=\ensuremath{\Sigma}{s}^{}\ensuremath{\mu}(\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{\mathrm{r}}s,\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{\mathrm{r}}s)$. The variational equations for the local and nonlocal cases are compared. The former must be replaced by a variational equation for an equivalent system of noninteracting particles, following a prescription of Kohn and Sham, in order to obtain a Schr\"odinger-like form, and contains only local potentials. The latter may be obtained directly in Schr\"odinger-like form, but the exchange-correlation potential is nonlocal. If the nonlocal pseudo-Hamiltonian exists [i.e., if the functional derivative $\frac{\ensuremath{\delta}E}{\ensuremath{\delta}\ensuremath{\mu}(x,{x}^{\ensuremath{'}})}$ exists for a nondegenerate ground-state density kernel], then the eigenfunctions of the pseudo-Hamiltonian are natural spin orbitals, and all partially occupied orbitals ($0<〈{\ensuremath{\varphi}}_{i}|\ensuremath{\mu}|{\ensuremath{\varphi}}_{i}〉<1$) belong to the same degenerate eigenvalue of the pseudo-Hamiltonian. Finally, it is shown, as a corollary of Coleman's theorem for NNN-representable density kernels, that any finite non-negative differentiable function is an NNN-representable particle density.
Abstract The Hohenberg–Kohn (HK) theorem for interacting electrons is a cornerstone of modern electronic structure calculations. For a general quantum system, a HK‐type Hamiltonian in the form of can always be defined, by grouping those terms with fixed or preknown coefficients into an internal part of the Hamiltonian , and factorizing the remaining as the superposition of a set of Hermitian operators . It is asked whether the HK theorem can be extended to such a general setting, so that the ground‐state expectation values of as the generalized density can in principle be used as the fundamental variables determining all the properties of the system. It is shown that the question can be addressed by the invertibility of generalized density correlation matrix (GDCM) defined with respect to the operators. This criterion is applied to several representative examples, including the quantum Ising dimer, frustration‐free systems, N ‐level quantum systems and a fermionic Hubbard chain. It is suggested that for a finite‐size system, finding an invertible GDCM under one single configuration is typically sufficient to establish the generic extensibility of the HK theorem in the entire parameter space.
Abstract According to the Hohenberg–Kohn theorem, there is an invertible one‐to‐one relationship between the Hamiltonian of a system and the corresponding ground‐state density ρ(r). The extension of the theorem to the time‐dependent case by Runge and Gross states that there is an invertible one‐to‐one relationship between the density ρ(rt) and the Hamiltonian (t). In the proof of the theorem, Hamiltonians / (t) that differ by an additive constant C/function C(t) are considered equivalent. Because the constant C/function C(t) is extrinsically additive, the physical system defined by these differing Hamiltonians / (t) is the same. Thus, according to the theorem, the density ρ(r)/ρ(rt) uniquely determines the physical system as defined by its Hamiltonian / (t). Hohenberg–Kohn, and by extension Runge and Gross, did not however consider the case of a set of degenerate Hamiltonians { }/{ (t)} that differ by an intrinsic constant C/function C(t) but which represent different physical systems and yet possess the same density ρ(r)/ρ(rt). The intrinsic constant C/function C(t) contains information about the different physical systems and helps differentiate between them. In such a case, the density ρ(r)/ρ(rt) cannot distinguish between these different Hamiltonians. In this article we construct such a set of degenerate Hamiltonians { }/{ (t)}. Thus, although the proof of the Hohenberg–Kohn theorem is independent of whether the constant C/function C(t) is additive or intrinsic, the applicability of the theorem is restricted to excluding the case of the latter. The corollary is as follows: degenerate Hamiltonians { }/{ (t)} that represent different physical systems, but differ by a constant C/function C(t), and yet possess the same density ρ(r)/ρ(rt), cannot be distinguished on the basis of the Hohenberg–Kohn/Runge–Gross theorem. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2003
The Hohenberg-Kohn (HK) theorem is one of the most fundamental theorems of quantum mechanics, and constitutes the basis for the very successful density-functional approach to inhomogeneous interacting many-particle systems. Here we show that in formulations of density-functional theory (DFT) that employ more than one density variable, applied to systems with a degenerate ground state, there is a subtle loophole in the HK theorem, as all mappings between densities, wave functions, and potentials can break down. Two weaker theorems which we prove here, the joint-degeneracy theorem and the internal-energy theorem, restore the internal, total, and exchange-correlation energy functionals to the extent needed in applications of DFT to atoms, molecules, and solids. The joint-degeneracy theorem constrains the nature of possible degeneracies in general many-body systems.
We prove Hohenberg-Kohn theorems for several models of quantum mechanics. First, we show that for possibly degenerate systems of several types of particles, the pair correlation functions of any ground state contain the information of the interactions and of the external potentials. Then, in the presence of the Zeeman interaction, a strong constraint on external fields is derived for systems having the same ground state densities and magnetizations. Next, we prove that the density and the entropy of a ground state contain the information of both the imposed external potential and temperature. Eventually, we conclude that at positive temperature, Hohenberg-Kohn theorems generically hold.
Abstract In this chapter, the Hohenberg-Kohn theorem of DFT is formulated and proved. This theorem says that there is a unique one-to-one correspondence between potentials and ground-state densities in electronic many-body systems. The original proof of Hohenberg and Kohn is presented and discussed, which proceeds in two steps: first, the mapping from potentials to wave functions is shown to be unique, followed by the mapping from wave functions to densities. Two corollaries of the theorem are then discussed: the variational principle, whereby the exact ground-state energy can be found by variation of the energy functional, and then the universality of parts of this energy functional. The so-called constrained search formalism is also briefly discussed.