Excitation energies with time-dependent density matrix functional theory: Singlet two-electron systems

Abstract

Time-dependent density functional theory in its current adiabatic implementations exhibits three striking failures: (a) Totally wrong behavior of the excited state surface along a bond-breaking coordinate, (b) lack of doubly excited configurations, affecting again excited state surfaces, and (c) much too low charge transfer excitation energies. We address these problems with time-dependent density matrix functional theory (TDDMFT). For two-electron systems the exact exchange-correlation functional is known in DMFT, hence exact response equations can be formulated. This affords a study of the performance of TDDMFT in the TDDFT failure cases mentioned (which are all strikingly exhibited by prototype two-electron systems such as dissociating H2 and HeH+). At the same time, adiabatic approximations, which will eventually be necessary, can be tested without being obscured by approximations in the functional. We find the following: (a) In the fully nonadiabatic (ω -dependent, exact) formulation of linear response TDDMFT, it can be shown that linear response (LR)-TDDMFT is able to provide exact excitation energies, in particular, the first order (linear response) formulation does not prohibit the correct representation of doubly excited states; (b) within previously formulated simple adiabatic approximations the bonding-to-antibonding excited state surface as well as charge transfer excitations are described without problems, but not the double excitations; (c) an adiabatic approximation is formulated in which also the double excitations are fully accounted for. © 2009 American Institute of Physics.