Multireference Approach to Normal and Resonant Auger Spectra Based on the One-Center Approximation

Abstract

A methodology to calculate the decay rates of normal and resonant Auger processes in atoms and molecules based on the One-Center Approximation (OCA), using atomic radial Auger integrals, is implemented within the restricted-active-space self-consistent-field (RASSCF) and the multistate restricted-active-space perturbation theory of second order (MS-RASPT2) frameworks, as part of the OpenMolcas project. To ensure an unbiased description of the correlation and relaxation effects on the initial core excited/ionized states and the final cationic states, their wave functions are optimized independently, whereas the Auger matrix elements are computed with a biorthonormalized set of molecular orbitals within the state-interaction (SI) approach. As a decay of an isolated resonance, the computation of Auger intensities involves matrix elements with one electron in the continuum. However, treating ionization and autoionization problems can be overwhelmingly complicated for nonexperts, because of many peculiarities, in comparison to bound-state electronic structure theory. One of the advantages of our approach is that by projecting the intensities on the atomic center bearing the core hole and using precalculated atomic radial two-electron integrals, the Auger decay rates can be easily obtained directly with OpenMolcas, avoiding the need to interface it with external programs to compute matrix elements with the photoelectron wave function. The implementation is tested on the Ne atom, for which numerous theoretical and experimental results are available for comparison, as well as on a set of prototype closed- and open-shell molecules, namely, CO, N2, HNCO, H2O, NO2, and C4N2H4 (pyrimidine).