Ezekiel Oyeniyi | Searcharxiv

arXiv2026

Pseudopotentials for Orbital-Free DFT: Capturing Nonlocality and Correcting Functional Approximants

Developing reliable pseudopotentials for orbital-free density functional theory (OF-DFT), especially for transition metals, remains a significant challenge. In this study, we provide a theoretical framework for analyzing pseudization strategies for OF-DFT calculations. From the analysis arises a proposed pseudization method which involves constructing local pseudopotentials by targeting existing Kohn-Sham DFT pseudopotentials through an optimized effective potential procedure. We produce four distinct sets of local pseudopotentials and evaluate their accuracy and transferability on the transition metal elements. Our results indicate a substantial improvement over previously available pseudopotentials. Although current OF-DFT functionals still only reach a qualitative accuracy for transition metals, our newly developed pseudopotentials provide a rigorous framework for further methodological advancements.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Excitation energies and UV-Vis absorption spectra from INDO/s+ML

The semi-empirical INDO/s method is popular for studies of excitation energies and absorption of molecules due to its low computational requirement, making it possible to make predictions for large systems. However, its accuracy is generally low, particularly, when compared with the typical accuracy of other methods such as time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). Here, we present machine learning (ML) models that correct the INDO/s results with negligible increases in the amount of computing resources needed. While INDO/s excitations energies have an average error of about 1.1 eV relative to TDDFT energies, the added ML corrections reduce the error to 0.2 eV. Furthermore, this combination of INDO/s and ML produces UV-Vis absorption spectra that are in good agreement with the TDDFT predictions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗