arXiv subjects

Hung Q. Pham

Publications and source records attributed to Hung Q. Pham.

13 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

A Unified Generative Framework for Scalable Chemical Reaction Network Exploration

Chemical reaction networks (CRNs) are crucial for understanding reaction mechanisms and guiding chemical synthesis, yet the computational exploration remains limited by the combinatorial growth of chemical space, the reliability of reaction path screening, and the cost of evaluating thermodynamic and kinetic properties. Here, we present ByteCRN, an end-to-end framework for computational CRN exploration that combines chemically informed reaction enumeration with generative transition state modeling. A key component of our framework is a generative rectified flow architecture for both transition state generation and reaction validation, where it maps reactant-product pairs to candidate transition state structures and verifies connectivity by mapping back to reactants and products. This unified generative strategy replaces the most expensive steps of conventional computational workflows, namely iterative transition state search and intrinsic reaction coordinate validation, within a complete CRN construction pipeline. ByteCRN delivers a 10--100-fold acceleration over traditional workflows while maintaining high predictive fidelity for individual reactions. At the network scale, it effectively prunes $\sim$70-90% of the enumerated reactions, streamlining the exploration of complex reaction space. Its utility is illustrated through the discovery of novel pathways involving cyanoacetaldehyde and the successful modeling of the challenging $γ$-ketohydroperoxide network, demonstrating a practical, scalable approach to autonomous chemical exploration.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2026

Quantum Many-Body Simulations of Catalytic Metal Surfaces

Quantum simulations of metal surfaces are critical for catalytic innovation. Yet existing methods face a cost-accuracy dilemma: density functional theory is efficient but system-dependent in accuracy, while wavefunction-based theories are accurate but prohibitively costly. Here we introduce FEMION (Fragment Embedding for Metals and Insulators with Onsite and Nonlocal correlation), a systematically improvable quantum embedding framework that resolves this challenge by capturing partially filled electronic states in metals. FEMION combines auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo for local catalytic sites with a global random phase approximation treatment of nonlocal screening, yielding a scalable approach across diverse catalytic systems. Employing FEMION, we address two longstanding challenges: determining the preferred CO adsorption site and quantifying the H2 desorption barrier on Cu(111). Furthermore, our calculations demonstrate that the recently discovered 10-electron-count rule can also be extended to the single-atom catalysis processes on 3d metal surfaces, resolving the controversies arising from density functional theory calculations. We thus open a predictive, first-principles route to modeling complex catalytic systems.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2026

The Python Simulations of Chemistry Framework: 10 years of an open-source quantum chemistry project

Over the past decade, the Python-based Simulations of Chemistry Framework (PySCF) has developed into a widely used open-source platform for electronic structure theory and quantum chemical method development. This article reviews the major advances since the previous overview in 2020, covering new modules and methodology, infrastructure changes, and performance benchmarks.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

Neural Scaling Laws Surpass Chemical Accuracy for the Many-Electron Schrödinger Equation

We demonstrate, for the first time, that neural scaling laws can deliver near-exact solutions to the many-electron Schrödinger equation across a broad range of realistic molecules. This progress is enabled by the Lookahead Variational Algorithm (LAVA), an effective optimization scheme that systematically translates increased model size and computational resources into greatly improved energy accuracy for neural network wavefunctions. Across all tested cases, including benzene, the absolute energy error exhibits a systematic power-law decay with respect to model capacity and computation resources. The resulting energies not only surpass the 1 kcal/mol "chemical-accuracy" threshold but also achieve 1 kJ/mol subchemical accuracy. Beyond energies, the scaled-up neural network also yields better wavefunctions with improved physical symmetries, alongside accurate electron densities, dipole moments, and other important properties. Our approach offers a promising way forward to addressing many long-standing challenges in quantum chemistry. For instance, we improve energetic properties for systems such as the potential energy curve of nitrogen dimer as dissociation is approached and the cyclobutadiene automerization reaction barrier, producing definitive benchmarks, particularly in regimes where experimental data are sparse or highly uncertain. We also shed light on the decades-old puzzle of the cyclic ozone stability with highly accurate calculations for the cyclic-to-open ozone barrier. These results provide near-exact reference calculations with unprecedented accuracy, universal reliability and practical applicability, establishing a foundation for AI-driven quantum chemistry.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

ByteQC: GPU-Accelerated Quantum Chemistry Package for Large-Scale Systems

Applying quantum chemistry algorithms to large-scale systems requires substantial computational resources scaled with the system size and the desired accuracy. To address this, ByteQC, a fully-functional and efficient package for large-scale quantum chemistry simulations, has been open-sourced at https://github.com/bytedance/byteqc, leveraging recent advances in computational power and many-body algorithms. Regarding computational power, several standard algorithms are efficiently implemented on modern GPUs, ranging from mean-field calculations (Hartree-Fock and density functional theory) to post-Hartree-Fock methods such as Møller-Plesset perturbation theory, random phase approximation, coupled cluster methods, and quantum Monte Carlo methods. For the algorithmic approach, we also employ a quantum embedding method, which significantly expands the tractable system size while preserving high accuracy at the gold-standard level. All these features have been systematically benchmarked. For standalone algorithms, the benchmark results demonstrate up to a 60$\times$ speedup when compared to 100-core CPUs. Additionally, the tractable system sizes have been significantly expanded: 1,610 orbitals for coupled cluster with single and double excitations (1,380 orbitals with perturbative triple excitations), 11,040 orbitals for Møller-Plesset perturbation theory of second order, 37,120 orbitals for mean-field calculations under open boundary conditions, and over 100,000 orbitals for periodic boundary conditions. For the advanced quantum embedding feature, two representative examples are demonstrated: the water cluster problem (2,752 orbitals) and a water monomer adsorbed on a boron nitride surface (3,929 orbitals), achieving the gold-standard accuracy.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

Advancing Surface Chemistry with Large-Scale Ab-Initio Quantum Many-Body Simulations

Predictive simulation of surface chemistry is of paramount importance for progress in fields from catalysis to electrochemistry and clean energy generation. Ab-initio quantum many-body methods should be offering deep insights into these systems at the electronic level, but are limited in their efficacy by their steep computational cost. In this work, we build upon state-of-the-art correlated wavefunctions to reliably converge to the `gold standard' accuracy in quantum chemistry for application to extended surface chemistry. Efficiently harnessing graphics processing unit acceleration along with systematically improvable multiscale resolution techniques, we achieve linear computational scaling up to 392 atoms in size. These large-scale simulations demonstrate the importance of converging to these extended system sizes, achieving a validating handshake between simulations with different boundary conditions for the interaction of water on a graphene surface. We provide a new benchmark for this water-graphene interaction that clarifies the preference for water orientations at the graphene interface. This is extended to the adsorption of carbonaceous molecules on chemically complex surfaces, including metal oxides and metal-organic frameworks, where we consistently achieve chemical accuracy compared to experimental references, and well inside the scatter of traditional density functional material modeling approaches. This pushes the state of the art for simulation of molecular adsorption on surfaces, and marks progress into a post-density functional era for more reliable and improvable approaches to first-principles modeling of surface problems at an unprecedented scale and accuracy using ab-initio quantum many-body methods.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2024

GPU-accelerated Auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo with multi-Slater determinant trial states

The accuracy of phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (ph-AFQMC) can be systematically improved with better trial states. Using multi-Slater determinant trial states, ph-AFQMC has the potential to faithfully treat strongly correlated systems, while balancing the static and dynamical correlations on an equal footing. This preprint presents an implementation and application of graphics processing unit-accelerated ph-AFQMC, for multi-Slater determinant trial wavefunctions (GPU-accelerated MSD-AFQMC), to enable efficient simulation of large-scale, strongly correlated systems. This approach allows for nearly-exact computation of ground state energies in multi-reference systems. Our GPU-accelerated MSD-AFQMC is implemented in the open-source code \texttt{ipie}, a Python-based AFQMC package [\textit{J. Chem. Theory Comput.}, 2022, 19(1): 109-121]. We benchmark the performance of the GPU code on transition-metal clusters like [Cu$_2$O$_2$]$^{2+}$ and [Fe$_2$S$_2$(SCH$_3$)]$^{2-}$. The GPU code achieves at least sixfold speedup in both cases, comparing the timings of a single A100 GPU to that of a 32-CPU node. For [Fe$_2$S$_2$(SCH$_3$)]$^{2-}$, we demonstrate that our GPU MSD-AFQMC can recover the dynamical correlation necessary for chemical accuracy with an MSD trial, despite the large number of determinants required ($>10^5$). Our work significantly enhances the efficiency of MSD-AFQMC calculations for large, strongly correlated molecules by utilizing GPUs, offering a promising path for exploring the electronic structure of transition metal complexes.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Scalable Quantum Monte Carlo with Direct-Product Trial Wave Functions

The computational demand posed by applying multi-Slater determinant trials in phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo methods (MSD-AFQMC) is particularly significant for molecules exhibiting strong correlations. Here, we propose using direct-product wave functions as trials for MSD-AFQMC, aiming to reduce computational overhead by leveraging the compactness of multi-Slater determinant trials in direct-product form (DP-MSD). This efficiency arises when the active space can be divided into non-coupling subspaces, a condition we term ``decomposable active space''. By employing localized-active space self-consistent field wave functions as an example of such trials, we demonstrate our proposed approach across a range of molecular systems, each exhibiting varying degrees of complexity in their electronic structures. Our findings indicate that the compact DP-MSD trials can reduce computational costs substantially, by up to 36 times for the C2H6N4 molecule where the two double bonds between nitrogen N=N are clearly separated by a C-C single bond, while maintaining accuracy when active spaces are decomposable. In the case of larger systems such as the benzene dimer, characterized by weak coupling between the two monomers, we observed a decrease in computational cost compared to using a complete active space trial, yet we retained the same level of accuracy. However, for systems where these active subspaces strongly couple, a scenario we refer to as "strong subspace coupling", the method's accuracy decreases compared to that achieved with a complete active space approach. We anticipate that our method will be beneficial for systems with non-coupling to weakly-coupling subspaces that require local multireference treatments.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Ab initio Quantum Simulation of Strongly Correlated Materials with Quantum Embedding

Quantum computing has shown great potential in various quantum chemical applications such as drug discovery, material design, and catalyst optimization. Although significant progress has been made in quantum simulation of simple molecules, ab initio simulation of solid-state materials on quantum computers is still in its early stage, mostly owing to the fact that the system size quickly becomes prohibitively large when approaching the thermodynamic limit. In this work, we introduce an orbital-based multi-fragment approach on top of the periodic density matrix embedding theory, resulting in a significantly smaller problem size for the current near-term quantum computer. We demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of our method compared with the conventional methodologies and experiments on solid-state systems with complex electronic structures. These include spin polarized states of a hydrogen chain (1D-H), the equation of states of a boron nitride layer (h-BN) as well as the magnetic ordering in nickel oxide (NiO), a prototypical strongly correlated solid. Our results suggest that quantum embedding combined with a chemically intuitive fragmentation can greatly advance quantum simulation of realistic materials, thereby paving the way for solving important yet classically hard industrial problems on near-term quantum devices.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Twenty Years of Auxiliary-Field Quantum Monte Carlo in Quantum Chemistry: An Overview and Assessment on Main Group Chemistry and Bond-Breaking

In this work, we present an overview of the phaseless auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (ph- AFQMC) approach from a computational quantum chemistry perspective, and present a numerical assessment of its performance on main group chemistry and bond-breaking problems with a total of 1004 relative energies. While our benchmark study is somewhat limited, we make recommendations for the use of ph-AFQMC for general main-group chemistry applications. For systems where single determinant wave functions are qualitatively accurate, we expect the accuracy of ph-AFQMC in conjunction with a single determinant trial wave function to be between that of coupled-cluster with singles and doubles (CCSD) and CCSD with perturbative triples (CCSD(T)). For these applications, ph-AFQMC should be a method of choice when canonical CCSD(T) is too expensive to run. For systems where multi-reference (MR) wave functions are needed for qualitative accuracy, ph-AFQMC is far more accurate than MR perturbation theory methods and competitive with MR configuration interaction (MRCI) methods. Due to the computational efficiency of ph-AFQMC compared to MRCI, we recommended ph-AFQMC as a method of choice for handling dynamic correlation in MR problems. We conclude with a discussion of important directions for future development of the ph-AFQMC approach.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2020

Recent developments in the PySCF program package

PYSCF is a Python-based general-purpose electronic structure platform that both supports first-principles simulations of molecules and solids, as well as accelerates the development of new methodology and complex computational workflows. The present paper explains the design and philosophy behind PYSCF that enables it to meet these twin objectives. With several case studies, we show how users can easily implement their own methods using PYSCF as a development environment. We then summarize the capabilities of PYSCF for molecular and solid-state simulations. Finally, we describe the growing ecosystem of projects that use PYSCF across the domains of quantum chemistry, materials science, machine learning and quantum information science.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2019

Periodic Electronic Structure Calculations With Density Matrix Embedding Theory

We extend density matrix embedding theory to periodic systems, resulting in an electronic band structure method for solid-state materials. The electron correlation can be captured by means of a local impurity model using various choices of wave function methods. The method is able to describe not only the ground-state energy but also the quasiparticle band picture via the real-momentum space implementation. We investigate the performance of periodic DMET in describing the ground-state energy as well as the electronic band structure for one-dimensional solids. Our results show that DMET are in good agreement with other many-body techniques at a cheaper computational cost. We anticipate that the periodic DMET can be a promising first principle method for strongly correlated materials.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2017

Can Density Matrix Embedding Theory with the Complete Activate Space Self-Consistent Field Solver Describe Single and Double Bond Breaking in Molecular Systems?

Density matrix embedding theory (DMET) [Phys. Rev. Lett.2012, 109, 186404] has been demonstrated as an efficient wave-function-based embedding method to treat extended systems. Despite its success in many quantum lattice models, the extension of DMET to real chemical systems has been tested only on selected cases. Herein, we introduce the use of the complete active space self-consistent field (CASSCF) method as a correlated impurity solver for DMET, leading to a method called CAS-DMET. We test its performance in describing the dissociation of a H-H single bond in a H10 ring model system and an N=N double bond in azomethane (CH3-N=N-CH3) and pentyldiazene (CH3(CH2)4-N=NH). We find that the performance of CAS-DMET is comparable to CASSCF with different active space choices when single-embedding DMET corresponding to only one embedding problem for the system is used. When multiple embedding problems are used for the system, the CAS-DMET is in a good agreement with CASSCF for the geometries around the equilibrium, but not in equal agreement at bond dissociation.

physics.chem-ph↗