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    Variational principle to regularize machine-learned density functionals: The non-interacting kinetic-energy functional
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    Abstract:
    Practical density functional theory (DFT) owes its success to the groundbreaking work of Kohn and Sham that introduced the exact calculation of the non-interacting kinetic energy of the electrons using an auxiliary mean-field system. However, the full power of DFT will not be unleashed until the exact relationship between the electron density and the non-interacting kinetic energy is found. Various attempts have been made to approximate this functional, similar to the exchange–correlation functional, with much less success due to the larger contribution of kinetic energy and its more non-local nature. In this work, we propose a new and efficient regularization method to train density functionals based on deep neural networks, with particular interest in the kinetic-energy functional. The method is tested on (effectively) one-dimensional systems, including the hydrogen chain, non-interacting electrons, and atoms of the first two periods, with excellent results. For atomic systems, the generalizability of the regularization method is demonstrated by training also an exchange–correlation functional, and the contrasting nature of the two functionals is discussed from a machine-learning perspective.
    Keywords:
    Regularization
    Energy functional
    Following a recent work [Gál, Phys. Rev. A64, 062503 (2001)], a simple derivation of the density-functional correction of the Hartree–Fock equations, the Hartree–Fock–Kohn–Sham equations, is presented, completing an integrated view of quantum mechanical theories, in which the Kohn–Sham equations, the Hartree–Fock–Kohn–Sham equations and the ground-state Schrödinger equation formally stem from a common ground: density-functional theory, through its Euler equation for the ground-state density. Along similar lines, the Kohn–Sham formulation of the Hartree–Fock approach is also considered. Further, it is pointed out that the exchange energy of density-functional theory built from the Kohn–Sham orbitals can be given by degree-two homogeneous N-particle density functionals (N = 1, 2, …), forming a sequence of degree-two homogeneous exchange-energy density functionals, the first element of which is minus the classical Coulomb-repulsion energy functional.
    Energy functional
    Kohn–Sham equations
    Thomas–Fermi model
    Citations (0)
    We design a density-functional-theory (DFT) exchange-correlation functional that enables an accurate treatment of systems with electronic surfaces. Surface-specific approximations for both exchange and correlation energies are developed. A subsystem functional approach is then used: an interpolation index combines the surface functional with a functional for interior regions. When the local density approximation is used in the interior, the result is a straightforward functional for use in self-consistent DFT. The functional is validated for two metals (Al, Pt) and one semiconductor (Si) by calculations of (i) established bulk properties (lattice constants and bulk moduli) and (ii) a property where surface effects exist (the vacancy formation energy). Good and coherent results indicate that this functional may serve well as a universal first choice for solid-state systems and that yet improved functionals can be constructed by this approach.
    Energy functional
    Functional theory
    Interpolation
    Lattice (music)
    Citations (0)
    Density functional theory (DFT) is one of the primary approaches to solving the many-body Schrodinger equation. The essential part of the DFT theory is the exchange-correlation (XC) functional, which can not be obtained in analytical form. Accordingly, the accuracy improvement of the DFT is mainly based on the development of XC functional approximations. Commonly, they are built upon analytic solutions in low- and high-density limits and result from quantum Monte Carlo or post-Hartree-Fock numerical calculations. However, there is no universal functional form to incorporate these data into XC functional. Instead, various parameterizations use heuristic rules to build a specific XC functional. The neural network (NN) approach to interpolate the data from higher precision theories can give a unified path to parametrize an XC functional. Moreover, data from many existing quantum chemical databases could provide the XC functional with improved accuracy. We develop NN XC functional, which gives exchange potential and energy density without direct derivatives of exchange-correlation energy density. Proposed NN architecture consists of two parts NN-E and NN-V, which could be trained in separate ways, adding new flexibility to XC functional. We also show that the developed NN XC functional converges in the self-consistent cycle and gives reasonable energies when applied to atoms, molecules, and crystals.
    Energy functional
    Interpolation
    Functional theory
    Abstract We propose a new density functional for the evaluation of the total electronic energy by subtracting the Roothaan energy, i.e. the Hartree energy of the density residual, from the Hohenberg–Kohn–Sham (HKS) functional, which is normally used in self‐consistent Kohn–Sham (KS) density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Because of the positive semi‐definite nature of the Roothaan energy, the resulting Wang–Zhou (WZ) functional always produces a total energy lower than that from the HKS functional and usually converges to the exact total energy from below. Following the same spirit of the Zhou–Wang‐λ (ZWλ) functional in the recently proposed orbital‐corrected orbital‐free (OO) DFT method (Zhou and Wang, J Chem Phys 2006, 124, 081107), we linearly mix the WZ functional with the HKS functional to allow further systematic error cancellations. The resulting Wang–Zhou‐α (WZα) functional is compared with the ZWλ functional in OO‐DFT calculations for systems within different chemical environment. We find that the optimal value of α for the WZα functional is more stable than that of λ for the ZWλ functional. This is because the WZ functional remedies the oscillatory convergence behavior of the Harris functional and renders the direct evaluation of α for the WZα functional more plausible in the application of the linear‐scaling OO‐DFT method for large systems. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007
    Energy functional
    Functional theory
    Functional approach
    Kohn–Sham equations
    Linear scale
    Total energy
    Citations (4)
    We present and test a new approximation for the exchange-correlation (xc) energy of Kohn-Sham density functional theory. It combines exact exchange with a compatible non-local correlation functional. The functional is by construction free of one-electron self-interaction, respects constraints derived from uniform coordinate scaling, and has the correct asymptotic behavior of the xc energy density. It contains one parameter that is not determined ab initio. We investigate whether it is possible to construct a functional that yields accurate binding energies and affords other advantages, specifically Kohn-Sham eigenvalues that reliably reflect ionization potentials. Tests for a set of atoms and small molecules show that within our local-hybrid form accurate binding energies can be achieved by proper optimization of the free parameter in our functional, along with an improvement in dissociation energy curves and in Kohn-Sham eigenvalues. However, the correspondence of the latter to experimental ionization potentials is not yet satisfactory, and if we choose to optimize their prediction, a rather different value of the functional's parameter is obtained. We put this finding in a larger context by discussing similar observations for other functionals and possible directions for further functional development that our findings suggest.
    Kohn–Sham equations
    Energy functional
    Citations (76)
    Abstract Density functional theory (DFT) is one of the primary approaches to solving the many-body Schrodinger equation. The essential part of the DFT theory is the exchange-correlation (XC) functional, which can not be obtained in analytical form. Accordingly, the accuracy improvement of the DFT is mainly based on the development of XC functional approximations. Commonly, they are built upon analytic solutions in low-and high-density limits and result from quantum Monte Carlo or post-Hartree-Fock numerical calculations. However, there is no universal functional form to incorporate these data into XC functional. Instead, various parameterizations use heuristic rules to build a specific XC functional. The neural network (NN) approach to interpolate the data from higher precision theories can give a unified path to parametrize an XC functional. Moreover, data from many existing quantum chemical databases could provide the XC functional with improved accuracy. We develop NN XC functional, which gives exchange potential and energy density without direct derivatives of exchange-correlation energy density. Proposed NN architecture consists of two parts NN-E and NN-V, which could be trained in separate ways, adding new flexibility to XC functional. We also show that the developed NN XC functional converges in the self-consistent cycle and gives reasonable energies when applied to atoms, molecules, and crystals.
    Energy functional
    Interpolation
    Functional theory
    Abstract Density functional theory (DFT) is one of the primary approaches to solving the many-body Schrodinger equation. The essential part of the DFT theory is the exchange-correlation (XC) functional, which can not be obtained in analytical form. Accordingly, the accuracy improvement of the DFT is mainly based on the development of XC functional approximations. Commonly, they are built upon analytic solutions in low-and high-density limits and result from quantum Monte Carlo or post-Hartree-Fock numerical calculations. However, there is no universal functional form to incorporate these data into XC functional. Instead, various parameterizations use heuristic rules to build a specific XC functional. The neural network (NN) approach to interpolate the data from higher precision theories can give a unified path to parametrize an XC functional. Moreover, data from many existing quantum chemical databases could provide the XC functional with improved accuracy. We develop NN XC functional, which gives exchange potential and energy density without direct derivatives of exchange-correlation energy density. Proposed NN architecture consists of two parts NN-E and NN-V, which could be trained in separate ways, adding new flexibility to XC functional. We also show that the developed NN XC functional converges in the self-consistent cycle and gives reasonable energies when applied to atoms, molecules, and crystals.
    Interpolation
    Energy functional
    Functional theory
    Since the seminal studies of Thomas and Fermi, researchers in the Density-Functional Theory (DFT) community are searching for accurate electron density functionals. Arguably, the toughest functional to approximate is the noninteracting kinetic energy, Ts[ρ], the subject of this work. The typical paradigm is to first approximate the energy functional and then take its functional derivative, δTs[ρ]δρ(r), yielding a potential that can be used in orbital-free DFT or subsystem DFT simulations. Here, this paradigm is challenged by constructing the potential from the second-functional derivative via functional integration. A new nonlocal functional for Ts[ρ] is prescribed [which we dub Mi-Genova-Pavanello (MGP)] having a density independent kernel. MGP is constructed to satisfy three exact conditions: (1) a nonzero “Kinetic electron” arising from a nonzero exchange hole; (2) the second functional derivative must reduce to the inverse Lindhard function in the limit of homogenous densities; (3) the potential is derived from functional integration of the second functional derivative. Pilot calculations show that MGP is capable of reproducing accurate equilibrium volumes, bulk moduli, total energy, and electron densities for metallic (body-centered cubic, face-centered cubic) and semiconducting (crystal diamond) phases of silicon as well as of III-V semiconductors. The MGP functional is found to be numerically stable typically reaching self-consistency within 12 iterations of a truncated Newton minimization algorithm. MGP’s computational cost and memory requirements are low and comparable to the Wang-Teter nonlocal functional or any generalized gradient approximation functional.
    Citations (80)
    We design a density-functional-theory (DFT) exchange-correlation functional that enables an accurate treatment of systems with electronic surfaces. Surface-specific approximations for both exchange and correlation energies are developed. A subsystem functional approach is then used: an interpolation index combines the surface functional with a functional for interior regions. When the local density approximation is used in the interior, the result is a straightforward functional for use in self-consistent DFT. The functional is validated for two metals (Al, Pt) and one semiconductor (Si) by calculations of (i) established bulk properties (lattice constants and bulk moduli) and (ii) a property where surface effects exist (the vacancy formation energy). Good and coherent results indicate that this functional may serve well as a universal first choice for solid-state systems and that yet improved functionals can be constructed by this approach.
    Energy functional
    Functional theory
    Interpolation
    Lattice (music)
    Lattice constant
    Citations (587)
    Density functional theory (DFT) is one of the primary approaches to get a solution to the many-body Schrodinger equation. The essential part of the DFT theory is the exchange-correlation (XC) functional, which can not be obtained in analytical form. Accordingly, the accuracy improvement of the DFT is mainly based on the development of XC functional approximations. Commonly, they are built upon analytic solutions in low- and high-density limits and result from quantum Monte Carlo or post-Hartree-Fock numerical calculations. However, there is no universal functional form to incorporate these data into XC functional. Various parameterizations use heuristic rules to build a specific XC functional. The neural network (NN) approach to interpolate the data from higher precision theories can give a unified path to parametrize an XC functional. Moreover, data from many existing quantum chemical databases could provide the XC functional with improved accuracy. In this work, we develop NN XC functional, which gives both exchange potential and exchange energy density. Proposed NN architecture consists of two parts NN-E and NN-V, which could be trained in separate ways, which adds additional flexibility. We also show the suitability of the developed NN XC functional in the self-consistent cycle when applied to atoms, molecules, and crystals.
    Interpolation
    Energy functional
    Functional theory
    Citations (0)