A major challenge in molecular electronic structure theory arises from chemical systems where the mean-field picture based upon a single electronic configuration fails to properly describe mechanics of many electrons. Such complex electronic states should be accounted for using a correlated superposition of multiple determinants and are referred to as multireference in quantum chemistry. Application domain of traditional multireference methods is severely limited to systems containing a small number of correlated electrons because of their exponential complexity. In recent years, much attention has been drawn to the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) theory as a promising alternative. It has been introduced in ab initio quantum chemistry calculations and shown to be a highly-scalable multireference method that can handle full quantum degrees of freedom for the strongly-correlated wavefunction with unprecedented large configuration space. In this article, we provide an explicative introduction to the underlying theory and formalism built into the DMRG method and give a brief overview of our methodological extensions that combine DMRG and active-space correlation models.
The ab initio density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) method has been well-established and has become one of the most accurate numerical methods for the precise electronic structure solution of large active spaces. In the past few years, to capture the missing dynamic correlation, various post-DMRG approaches have been proposed through the combination of DMRG and multireference quantum chemical methods or density functional theory. With this in mind, this work provides a brief overview of ab initio DMRG principles and the new developments within post-DMRG methods. For clarity, post-DMRG methods are classified into two main categories depending on whether high-order n -electron reduced density matrices are used, and their merits and disadvantages are properly discussed. Finally, we conclude by discussing unsolved bottlenecks and giving development perspectives of post-DMRG approaches, which are expected to yield quantitative descriptions of complex electronic structures in large strongly correlated molecules and materials.
This article presents an efficient and parallelized implementation of the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) algorithm for quantum chemistry calculations. The DMRG method as a large-scale multireference electronic structure model is by nature particularly efficient for one-dimensionally correlated systems, while the present development is oriented toward applications for polynuclear transition metal compounds, in which the macroscopic one-dimensional structure of electron correlation is absent. A straightforward extension of the DMRG algorithm is proposed with further improvements and aggressive optimizations to allow its application with large multireference active space, which is often demanded for metal compound calculations. Special efficiency is achieved by making better use of sparsity and symmetry in the operator and wave function representations. By accomplishing computationally intensive DMRG calculations, the authors have found that a large number of renormalized basis states are required to represent high entanglement of the electron correlation for metal compound applications, and it is crucial to adopt auxiliary perturbative correction to the projected density matrix during the DMRG sweep optimization in order to attain proper convergence to the solution. Potential energy curve calculations for the Cr(2) molecule near the known equilibrium precisely predicted the full configuration interaction energies with a correlation space of 24 electrons in 30 orbitals [denoted by (24e,30o)]. The energies are demonstrated to be accurate to 0.6mE(h) (the error from the extrapolated best value) when as many as 10,000 renormalized basis states are employed for the left and right DMRG block representations. The relative energy curves for [Cu(2)O(2)](2+) along the isomerization coordinate were obtained from DMRG and other correlated calculations, for which a fairly large orbital space (32e,62o) is modeled as a full correlation space. The DMRG prediction nearly overlaps with the energy curve from the coupled cluster with singles, doubles, and perturbative triple [CCSD(T)] calculations, while the multireference complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) calculations with the small reference configuration (8e,8o) are found to overestimate the biradical character of the electronic state of [Cu(2)O(2)](2+) according to the one-electron density matrix analysis.
The density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) has become a powerful numerical method that can be applied to low-dimensional strongly correlated fermionic and bosonic systems. It allows for a very precise calculation of static, dynamic and thermodynamic properties. Its field of applicability has now extended beyond condensed matter, and is successfully used in quantum chemistry, statistical mechanics, quantum information theory, and nuclear and high-energy physics as well. In this article, we briefly review the main aspects of the method and present some of the most relevant applications so as to give an overview of the scope and possibilities of DMRG. We focus on the most important extensions of the method such as the calculation of dynamical properties, the application to classical systems, finite-temperature simulations, phonons and disorder, field theory, time-dependent properties and the ab initio calculation of electronic states in molecules. The recent quantum information interpretation, the development of highly accurate time-dependent algorithms and the possibility of using the DMRG as the impurity-solver of the dynamical mean field method (DMFT) give new insights into its present and potential uses. We review the numerous very recent applications of these techniques where the DMRG has shown to be one of the most reliable and versatile methods in modern computational physics.
(April 2006) The Density Matrix Renormalization Group (DMRG) has become a powerful numerical method that can be applied to low-dimensional strongly correlated fermionic and bosonic systems. It allows for a very precise calculation of static, dynamic and thermodynamic properties. Its field of applicability has now extended beyond Condensed Matter, and is successfully used in Quantum Chemistry, Statistical Mechanics, Quantum Information Theory, Nuclear and High Energy Physics as well. In this article, we briefly review the main aspects of the method and present some of the most relevant applications so as to give an overview on the scope and possibilities of DMRG. We focus on the most important extensions of the method such as the calculation of dynamical properties, the application to classical systems, finite temperature simulations, phonons and disorder, field theory, time-dependent properties and the ab initio calculation of electronic states in molecules. The recent quantum information interpretation, the development of highly accurate time-dependent algorithms and the possibility of using the DMRG as the impurity-solver of the Dynamical Mean Field Method (DMFT) give new insights into its present and potential uses. We review the numerous very recent applications of these techniques where the DMRG has shown to be one of the most reliable and
The Density Matrix Renormalization Group (DMRG) has become a powerful numerical method that can be applied to low-dimensional strongly correlated fermionic and bosonic systems. It allows for a very precise calculation of static, dynamical and thermodynamical properties. Its field of applicability has now extended beyond Condensed Matter, and is successfully used in Statistical Mechanics and High Energy Physics as well. In this article, we briefly review the main aspects of the method. We also comment on some of the most relevant applications so as to give an overview on the scope and possibilities of DMRG and mention the most important extensions of the method such as the calculation of dynamical properties, the application to classical systems, inclusion of temperature, phonons and disorder, field theory, time-dependent properties and the ab initio calculation of electronic states in molecules.