arXiv subjects

Neepa T. Maitra

Publications and source records attributed to Neepa T. Maitra.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Post-pulse dipole instability in adiabatic TDDFT: fact or artifact?

Recent real-time TDDFT calculations have reported an unexpected delayed growth of molecular dipole oscillations some time after an extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) pulse is applied. We show that numerical and analytical arguments suggest that this instability is an artifact of an incorrect non-linearity introduced by the computational approach: Propagation with an adiabatic exchange-correlation approximation within the time-dependent Kohn-Sham equations of time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) tends to amplify initially small and pure sinusoidal oscillations in a system. On the other hand, when this same adiabatic approximation is used within the recent response-reformulated RR-TDDFT,the instability is absent. The absorbing boundary condition plays a crucial role consistent with our argument. We demonstrate this explicitly on the N2 molecule subject to an XUV pulse, with a range of adiabatic functionals.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2026

Harnessing dressed time-dependent density functional theory for the non-perturbative regime: Electron dynamics with double excitations

Recent progress has been made in capturing spectral features of electronic states of double-excitation character in time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) through a frequency-dependent kernel. While it might appear that this development is limited to the perturbative regime, we show that when used within response-reformulated TDDFT, it accurately captures strong-field dynamics involving states of double-excitation character. More generally, this demonstrates how RR-TDDFT enables exchange-correlation functional developments in the response regime, which have so far been more successful than those in the non-linear regime, to be exploited for non-perturbative dynamics, thus significantly broadening their range of applications.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

Excited State Densities from Time-Dependent Density Functional Response Theory

While the variational principle for excited-state energies leads to a route to obtaining excited-state densities from time-dependent density functional theory, relatively little attention has been paid to the quality of the resulting densities in real space obtained with different exchange-correlation functional approximations, nor how non-adiabatic approximations developed for energies of states of double excitation character perform for their densities. Here we derive an expression directly in real space for the excited-state density, that includes the case of non-adiabatic kernels, and consequently is able, for the first time, to yield densities of states of double-excitation character. Under some well-defined simplifications, we compare the performance of the local-density approximation and exact-exchange approximation, which are in a sense at opposite extremes of the fundamental functional approximations, on local and charge-transfer excitations in one-dimensional model systems, and show that the dressed TDDFT approach gives good densities of double-excitations.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

Roadmap for Molecular Benchmarks in Nonadiabatic Dynamics

Simulating the coupled electronic and nuclear response of a molecule to light excitation requires the application of nonadiabatic molecular dynamics. However, when faced with a specific photophysical or photochemical problem, selecting the most suitable theoretical approach from the wide array of available techniques is not a trivial task. The challenge is further complicated by the lack of systematic method comparisons and rigorous testing on realistic molecular systems. This absence of comprehensive molecular benchmarks remains a major obstacle to advances within the field of nonadiabatic molecular dynamics. A CECAM workshop, Standardizing Nonadiabatic Dynamics: Towards Common Benchmarks, was held in May 2024 to address this issue. This Perspective highlights the key challenges identified during the workshop in defining molecular benchmarks for nonadiabatic dynamics. Specifically, this work outlines some preliminary observations on essential components needed for simulations and proposes a roadmap aiming to establish, as an ultimate goal, a community-driven, standardized molecular benchmark set.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

Capturing the elusive curve-crossing in low-lying states of butadiene with dressed TDDFT

A striking example of the need to accurately capture states of double-excitation character in molecules is seen in predicting photo-induced dynamics in small polyenes. Due to the coupling of electronic and nuclear motions,the dark 2$^1$Ag state, known to have double-excitation character, can be reached after an initial photo-excitation to the bright $^1$Bu state via crossings of their potential energy surfaces. However, the shapes of the surfaces are so poorly captured by most electronic structure methods, that the crossing is missed or substantially mis-located. We demonstrate that the frequency-dependent kernel of dressed TDDFT beyond Tamm-Dancoff successfully captures the curve-crossing, providing an energy surface close to the highly accurate but more expensive $δ$-CR-EOMCC(2,3) benchmark reference. This, along with its accurate prediction of the excitation character of the state makes dressed TDDFT a practical and accurate route to electronic structure quantities needed in modeling ultrafast dynamics in molecules.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

Electronic Coherences in Molecules: The Projected Nuclear Quantum Momentum as a Hidden Agent

Electronic coherences are key to understanding and controlling photo-induced molecular transformations. We identify a crucial quantum-mechanical feature of electron-nuclear correlation, the projected nuclear quantum momenta, essential to capture the correct coherence behavior. In simulations, we show that, unlike traditional trajectory-based schemes, exact-factorization-based methods approximate these correlation terms, and correctly capture electronic coherences in a range of situations, including their spatial dependence, an important aspect that influences subsequent electron dynamics and that is becoming accessible in more experiments.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

Exciting DeePMD: Learning excited state energies, forces, and non-adiabatic couplings

We extend the DeePMD neural network architecture to predict electronic structure properties necessary to perform non-adiabatic dynamics simulations. While learning the excited state energies and forces follows a straightforward extension of the DeePMD approach for ground-state energies and forces, how to learn the map between the non-adiabatic coupling vectors (NACV) and the local chemical environment descriptors of DeePMD is less trivial. Most implementations of machine-learning-based non-adiabatic dynamics inherently approximate the NACVs, with an underlying assumption that the energy-difference-scaled NACVs are conservative fields. We overcome this approximation, implementing the method recently introduced by Richardson [J. Chem. Phys. 158 011102 (2023)], which learns the symmetric dyad of the energy-difference-scaled NACV. The efficiency and accuracy of our neural network architecture is demonstrated through the example of the methaniminium cation CH$_2$NH$_2^+$.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

Reformulation of Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory for Non-Perturbative Dynamics: The Rabi Oscillation Problem Resolved

Rabi oscillations have long been thought to be out of reach in simulations using time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT), a prominent symptom of the failure of the adiabatic approximation for non-perturbative dynamics. We present a reformulation of TDDFT which requires response quantities only, thus enabling an adiabatic approximation to predict such dynamics accurately because the functional is evaluated on a density close to the ground-state, instead of on the fully non-perturbative density. Our reformulation applies to it any real-time dynamics, redeeming TDDFT far from equilibrium. Examples of a resonantly-driven local excitation in a model He atom, and charge-transfer in the LiCN molecule are given.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

Exact-factorization-based surface-hopping without velocity adjustment

While surface-hopping has emerged as a powerful method to simulate non-adiabatic dynamics in large molecules, the ad hoc nature of the necessary velocity adjustments and decoherence corrections in the algorithm somewhat reduces its reliability. Here we propose a new scheme that eliminates these aspects, by combining the nuclear equation from the quantum trajectory surface-hopping approach with the electronic equation derived from the exact factorization approach. The resulting method, denoted QTSH-XF, places surface-hopping on a firmer ground and is shown to successfully capture dynamics in Tully models and in a linear vibronic coupling model of the photo-excited uracil cation.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Oscillator strengths and excited-state couplings for double excitations in time-dependent density functional theory

Although useful to extract excitation energies of states of double-excitation character in time-dependent density functional theory that are missing in the adiabatic approximation, the frequency-dependent kernel derived earlier [J. Chem. Phys. {\bf 120}, 5932 (2004)] was not designed to yield oscillator strengths. These are required to fully determine linear absorption spectra and they also impact excited-to-excited-state couplings that appear in dynamics simulations and other quadratic response properties. Here we derive a modified non-adiabatic kernel that yields both accurate excitation energies and oscillator strengths for these states. We demonstrate its performance on a model two-electron system, the Be atom, and on excited-state transition dipoles in the LiH molecule at stretched bond-lengths, in all cases producing significant improvements over the traditional approximations.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Different Flavors of Exact-Factorization-Based Mixed Quantum-Classical Methods for Multistate Dynamics

The exact factorization approach has led to the development of new mixed quantum-classical methods for simulating coupled electron-ion dynamics. We compare their performance for dynamics when more than two electronic states are occupied at a given time, and analyze: (1) the use of coupled versus auxiliary trajectories in evaluating the electron-nuclear correlation terms, (2) the approximation of using these terms within surface-hopping and Ehrenfest frameworks, and (3) the relevance of the exact conditions of zero population transfer away from nonadiabatic coupling regions and total energy conservation. Dynamics through the three-state conical intersection in the uracil radical cation as well as polaritonic models in one dimension are studied.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Non-Adiabatic Approximations in Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory: Progress and Prospects

Time-dependent density functional theory continues to draw a large number of users in a wide range of fields exploring myriad applications involving electronic spectra and dynamics. Although in principle exact, the predictivity of the calculations is limited by the available approximations for the exchange-correlation functional. In particular, it is known that the exact exchange-correlation functional has memory-dependence, but in practise adiabatic approximations are used which ignore this. Here we review the development of non-adiabatic functional approximations, their impact on calculations, and challenges in developing practical and accurate memory-dependent functionals for general purposes.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Curing the Divergence in Time-Dependent Density Functional Quadratic Response Theory

The adiabatic approximation in time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) is known to give an incorrect pole structure in the quadratic response function, leading to unphysical divergences in excited state-to-state transition probabilities and hyperpolarizabilties. We find the form of the exact quadratic response kernel and derive a practical and accurate approximation that cures the divergence. We demonstrate our results on excited state-to-state transition probabilities of a model system and of the LiH molecule.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2023

Energy-Conserving Coupled Trajectory Mixed Quantum Classical Dynamics

The coupled-trajectory mixed quantum classical method (CTMQC), derived from the exact factorization approach, has successfully predicted photo-chemical dynamics in a number of interesting molecules, capturing population transfer and decoherence from first-principles. However, due to the approximations made, CTMQC does not guarantee energy conservation. We propose a modified algorithm, CTMQC-E, which redefines the integrated force in the coupled-trajectory term so to restore energy conservation, and demonstrate its accuracy on scattering in Tully's extended coupling region model and photoisomerization in a retinal chromophore model.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2022

The Exact Exchange-Correlation Potential in Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory: Choreographing Electrons with Steps and Peaks

The time-dependent exchange-correlation potential has an unusual task in directing fictitious non-interacting electrons to move with exactly the same probability density as true interacting electrons. This has intriguing implications for its structure, especially in the non-perturbative regime, leading to step and peak features that cannot be captured by bootstrapping any ground-state functional approximations. We review what has been learned about these features in the exact exchange-correlation potential in time-dependent density functional theory in the past decade or so, and implications for the performance of simulations when electrons are driven far from any ground-state.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2022

Exact Factorization Adventures: A Promising Approach for Non-bound States

Modeling the dynamics of non-bound states in molecules requires an accurate description of how electronic motion affects nuclear motion and vice-versa. The exact factorization (XF) approach offers a unique perspective, in that it provides potentials that act on the nuclear subsystem or electronic subsystem, which contain the effects of the coupling to the other subsystem in an exact way. We briefly review the various applications of the XF idea in different realms, and how features of these potentials aid in the interpretation of two different laser-driven dissociation mechanisms. We present a detailed study of the different ways the coupling terms in recently-developed XF-based mixed quantum-classical approximations are evaluated, where either truly coupled trajectories, or auxiliary trajectories that mimic the coupling are used, and discuss their effect in both a surface-hopping framework as well as the rigorously-derived coupled-trajectory mixed quantum-classical approach.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2022

Exact-Factorization-Based Surface-Hopping for Multi-State Dynamics

A surface-hopping algorithm recently derived from the exact factorization approach, SHXF, [Ha, Lee, Min, J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 9, 1097 (2018)] introduces an additional term in the electronic equation of surface-hopping, which couples electronic states through the quantum momentum. This term not only provides a first-principles description of decoherence but here we show it is crucial to accurately capture non-adiabatic dynamics when more than two states are occupied at any given time. Using a vibronic coupling model of the uracil cation, we show that the lack of this term in traditional surface-hopping methods, including those with decoherence-corrections, leads to failure to predict the dynamics through a three-state intersection, while SHXF performs similarly to the multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree quantum dynamics benchmark.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2021

Analysis of the Classical Trajectory Treatment of Photon Dynamics for Polaritonic Phenomena

Simulating photon dynamics in strong light-matter coupling situations via classical trajectories is proving to be powerful and practical. Here we analyze the performance of the approach through the lens of the exact factorization approach. Since the exact factorization enables a rigorous definition of the potentials driving the photonic motion it allows us to identify that the cause of the underestimation of photon number and intensities observed in earlier work is primarily due to an inadequate accounting of light-matter correlation in the classical Ehrenfest force rather than errors from treating the photons quasiclassically per se. The latter becomes problematic when the number of photons per mode begins to exceed a half.

quant-ph↗