DFTB+, a software package for efficient approximate density functional theory based atomistic simulations

in Journal of Chemical Physics (2020), 152(12), 124101

DFTB+ is a versatile community developed open source software package offering fast and efficient methods for carrying out atomistic quantum mechanical simulations. By implementing various methods ... [more ▼]

DFTB+ is a versatile community developed open source software package offering fast and efficient methods for carrying out atomistic quantum mechanical simulations. By implementing various methods approximating density functional theory (DFT), such as the density functional based tight binding (DFTB) and the extended tight binding method, it enables simulations of large systems and long timescales with reasonable accuracy while being considerably faster for typical simulations than the respective ab initio methods. Based on the DFTB framework, it additionally offers approximated versions of various DFT extensions including hybrid functionals, time dependent formalism for treating excited systems, electron transport using non-equilibrium Green’s functions, and many more. DFTB+ can be used as a user-friendly standalone application in addition to being embedded into other software packages as a library or acting as a calculation-server accessed by socket communication. We give an overview of the recently developed capabilities of the DFTB+ code, demonstrating with a few use case examples, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the various features, and also discuss on-going developments and possible future perspectives. [less ▲]

Density Functional Model for van der Waals Interactions: Unifying Many-Body Atomic Approaches with Nonlocal Functionals

in Physical Review Letters (2020)

Nonlocal electronic correlations in the cohesive properties of high-pressure hydrogen solids

in Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters (2020)

Impact of nuclear vibrations on van der Waals and Casimir interactions at zero and finite temperature

in Science Advances (2019), 5(1), 0456

Recent advances in measuring van der Waals (vdW) interactions have probed forces on molecules at nanometric separations from metal surfaces and demonstrated the importance of infrared nonlocal ... [more ▼]

Recent advances in measuring van der Waals (vdW) interactions have probed forces on molecules at nanometric separations from metal surfaces and demonstrated the importance of infrared nonlocal polarization response and temperature effects, yet predictive theories for these systems remain lacking. We present a theoretical framework for computing vdW interactions among molecular structures, accounting for geometry, short-range electronic delocalization, dissipation, and collective nuclear vibrations (phonons) at atomic scales, along with long-range electromagnetic interactions in arbitrary macroscopic environments. We primarily consider experimentally relevant low-dimensional carbon allotropes, including fullerenes, carbyne, and graphene, and find that phonons couple strongly with long-range electromagnetic fields depending on molecular dimensionality and dissipation, especially at nanometric scales, creating delocalized phonon polaritons that substantially modify infrared molecular response. These polaritons, in turn, alter vdW interaction energies between molecular and macroscopic structures, producing nonmonotonic power laws and nontrivial temperature variations at nanometric separations feasible in current experiments. [less ▲]

van der Waals Interactions in Material Modelling

in Handbook of Materials Modeling: Methods: Theory and Modeling (2018)

Van der Waals (vdW) interactions stem from electronic zero-point fluctuations and are often critical for the correct description of structure, stability, and response properties of molecules and materials ... [more ▼]

Van der Waals (vdW) interactions stem from electronic zero-point fluctuations and are often critical for the correct description of structure, stability, and response properties of molecules and materials, including biomolecules, nanomaterials, and material interfaces. Here, we give a conceptual as well as mathematical overview of the current state of modeling vdW interactions,focusing in particular on the consequences of different approximations for practical applications. We present a systematic classification of approximate first-principles models based on the adiabatic-connection fluctuation-dissipation theorem, namely the nonlocal density functionals, interatomic methods, and methods based on the random-phase approximation. The applicability of these methods to different types of materials and material properties is discussed in connection with availability of theoretical and experimental benchmarks. We conclude with a roadmap of the open problems that remain to be solved to construct a universal, efficient, and accurate vdW model for realistic material modeling. [less ▲]

Unifying Microscopic and Continuum Treatments of van der Waals and Casimir Interactions

in Physical Review Letters (2017), 118(1), 266802

We present an approach for computing long-range van der Waals (vdW) interactions between complex molecular systems and arbitrarily shaped macroscopic bodies, melding atomistic treatments of electronic ... [more ▼]

We present an approach for computing long-range van der Waals (vdW) interactions between complex molecular systems and arbitrarily shaped macroscopic bodies, melding atomistic treatments of electronic fluctuations based on density functional theory in the former with continuum descriptions of strongly shape dependent electromagnetic fields in the latter, thus capturing many-body and multiple scattering effects to all orders. Such a theory is especially important when considering vdW interactions at mesoscopic scales, i.e., between molecules and structured surfaces with features on the scale of molecular sizes, in which case the finite sizes, complex shapes, and resulting nonlocal electronic excitations of molecules are strongly influenced by electromagnetic retardation and wave effects that depend crucially on the shapes of surrounding macroscopic bodies. We show that these effects together can modify vdW interaction energies and forces, as well as molecular shapes deformed by vdW interactions, by orders of magnitude compared to previous treatments based on Casimir-Polder, nonretarded, or pairwise approximations, which are valid only at macroscopically large or atomic-scale separations or in dilute insulating media, respectively. [less ▲]

Tuning Intermolecular Interactions with Nanostructured Environments

in Chemistry of Materials (2016), ASAP