Hrant P. Hratchian

Using Hessian Updating To Increase the Efficiency of a Hessian Based Predictor-Corrector Reaction Path Following Method

The reaction path is a key concept in the theoretical description of a chemical reaction. The intrinsic reaction coordinate is defined as the steepest descent path in mass-weighted Cartesian coordinates that connects the transition state to reactants and products on the potential energy surface. Recently, a new Hessian based predictor-corrector reaction path following algorithm was presented that is comparable to a fourth-order algorithm developed earlier. Although the method is very accurate, it is costly because second derivatives of the energy are required at each step. In this work, the efficiency of the method is greatly enhanced by employing Hessian updating. Three different updating schemes have been tested:  Murtagh and Sargent, Powell-symmetric Broyden, and Bofill. Bofills update performs the best and yields excellent speed-up.

Accurate reaction paths using a Hessian based predictor-corrector integrator

Central to the theoretical description of a chemical reaction is the reaction pathway. The intrinsic reaction coordinate is defined as the steepest descent path in mass weighted Cartesian coordinates that connects the transition state to reactants and products. In this work, a new integrator for the steepest descent pathway is presented. This method is a Hessian based predictor-corrector algorithm that affords pathways comparable to our previous fourth order method at the cost of a second order approach. The proposed integrator is tested on an analytic surface, four moderately sized chemical reactions, and one larger organometallic system.

Finding minima, transition states, and following reaction pathways on ab initio potential energy surfaces

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses recent advancements and commonly used techniques for exploring potential energy surfaces (PESs) are surveyed in the context of electronic structure methods. Specifically, minimization, transition state optimization, and reaction path following are discussed. In addition to reviewing current progress in these areas, the chapter also deals with a number of practical discussions regarding minimization, transition state optimization, and reaction path following, including suggestions for overcoming common pitfalls. PESs play a central role in computational chemistry. It forms a central concept in the theoretical description of molecular structures, properties, and reactivities. The study of most chemical processes and properties by computational chemists begins with the optimization of one or more structures to find minima on PESs, which correspond to equilibrium geometries. To obtain reaction barriers and calculate reaction rates using transition state theory (TST), it is necessary to locate the first-order saddle points on the PES, which correspond to transition states (TS). Often one needs to confirm that a TS lies on a pathway that actually connects the minima corresponding to reactants and products

First Principles Modeling of Eosin-Loaded ZnO Films: A Step toward the Understanding of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Performances

A theoretical investigation of eosin-Y (EY) loaded ZnO thin films, the basic components of a dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC), is presented. The EY/ZnO wurtzite (10-10) system has been fully described within a periodic approach using density functional theory (DFT) and a hybrid exchange-correlation functional. Reduced systems were also analyzed to simulate an electron transfer from the dye to the substrate. Injection times from dye to the semiconductor were calculated using the Newns-Anderson approach. Finally, the UV-visible spectra of EY/ZnO films were simulated using a time-dependent DFT approach and compared to that of the EY molecule computed in solution. The results obtained highlight that EY strongly adsorbs on the ZnO substrate contributing significantly to the electronic structure of the adsorbed system. The UV-visible spectral signature of the isolated EY molecule is still found when adsorbed on ZnO but the analysis of Gamma-point crystalline orbitals reveals that a direct HOMO-->LUMO excitation cannot lead to a direct electron injection into the semiconductor, the first unoccupied orbital with contributions from the ZnO substrate being the LUMO + 1. As a consequence, a two photon injection mechanism is proposed explaining the low efficiency of the EY/ZnO solar cells. On this basis, possible strategies for enhancing the cell efficiency are presented and discussed.

QM:QM electronic embedding using Mulliken atomic charges: Energies and analytic gradients in an ONIOM framework

An accurate first-principles treatment of chemical reactions for large systems remains a significant challenge facing electronic structure theory. Hybrid models, such as quantum mechanics:molecular mechanics (QM:MM) and quantum mechanics:quantum mechanics (QM:QM) schemes, provide a promising avenue for such studies. For many chemistries, including important reactions in materials science, molecular mechanics or semiempirical methods may not be appropriate, or parameters may not be available (e.g., surface chemistry of compound semiconductors such as indium phosphide or catalytic chemistry of transition metal oxides). In such cases, QM:QM schemes are of particular interest. In this work, a QM:QM electronic embedding model within the ONIOM (our own N-layer integrated molecular orbital molecular mechanics) extrapolation framework is presented. To define the embedding potential, we choose the real-system low-level Mulliken atomic charges. This results in a set of well-defined and unique embedding charges. However, the parametric dependence of the charges on molecular geometry complicates the energy gradient that is necessary for the efficient exploration of potential energy surfaces. We derive an efficient form for the forces where a single set of self-consistent field response equations is solved. Initial tests of the method and key algorithmic issues are discussed.

Chemical failure modes of AlQ3-based OLEDs: AlQ3 hydrolysis

Tris(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum(III), AlQ3, is used in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) as an electron-transport material and emitting layer. The reaction of AlQ3 with trace H2O has been implicated as a major failure pathway for AlQ3-based OLEDs. Hybrid density functional calculations have been carried out to characterize the hydrolysis of AlQ3. The thermochemical and atomistic details for this important reaction are reported for both the neutral and oxidized AlQ3/AlQ3+ systems. In support of experimental conclusions, the neutral hydrolysis reaction pathway is found to be a thermally activated process, having a classical barrier height of 24.2 kcal mol(-1). First-principles infrared and electronic absorption spectra are compared to further characterize AlQ3 and the hydrolysis pathway product, AlQ2OH. The activation energy for the cationic AlQ3 hydrolysis pathway is found to be 8.5 kcal mol(-1) lower than for the neutral reaction, which is significant since it suggests a role for charge imbalance in promoting chemical failure modes in OLED devices.

Steepest descent reaction path integration using a first-order predictor-corrector method.

The theoretical treatment of chemical reactions inevitably includes the integration of reaction pathways. After reactant, transition structure, and product stationary points on the potential energy surface are located, steepest descent reaction path following provides a means for verifying reaction mechanisms. Accurately integrated paths are also needed when evaluating reaction rates using variational transition state theory or reaction path Hamiltonian models. In this work an Euler-based predictor-corrector integrator is presented and tested using one analytic model surface and five chemical reactions. The use of Hessian updating, as a means for reducing the overall computational cost of the reaction path calculation, is also discussed.

ONIOM-based QM:QM electronic embedding method using Löwdin atomic charges: Energies and analytic gradients

In this work, we report a new quantum mechanical:quantum mechanical (QM:QM) method which provides explicit electronic polarization of the high-level region by using the Löwdin atomic charges from the low-level region. This provides an embedding potential which naturally evolves with changes in nuclear geometry. However, this coupling of the high-level and low-level regions introduces complications in the energy gradient evaluation. Following previous work, we derive and implement efficient gradients where a single set of self-consistent field response equations is solved. We provide results for the calculation of deprotonation energies of a hydroxylated spherosiloxane cluster (Si(8)O(12)H(7)OH) and the dissociation energy of a water molecule from a [ZnIm(3)(H(2)O)](2+) complex. We find that the Lowdin charge embedding model provides results which are not only an improvement over mechanical embedding (no electronic embedding) but which are also resistant to large overpolarization effects which occur more often with Mulliken charge embedding. Finally, a scaled-Löwdin charge embedding method is also presented which provides a method for fine tuning the extent of electronic polarization.

Integrating steepest-descent reaction pathways for large molecules.

Exploring potential energy surfaces of large molecular systems can be quite challenging due to the increased number of nuclear degrees of freedom. Many techniques that are well-suited for small and moderate size systems require diagonalization of the energy second-derivative matrix. Since the cost of this step scales as O(N(atoms)(3)) (where N(atoms) is the number of atomic centers), such methods quickly become infeasible and are eventually rendered cost prohibitive. In this work, the recently developed Euler-based predictor-corrector reaction path integration method [H. P. Hratchian, M. J. Frisch, and H. B. Schlegel, J. Chem. Phys. 133, 224101 (2010)] is enhanced and proposed as a useful alternative to conventional reaction path following schemes in studies on very large systems. Because this integrator does not require Hessian diagonalization, the O(N(atoms)(3)) bottleneck afflicting other approaches is completely avoided. The effectiveness of the integrator in large system studies is demonstrated with an enzyme-catalyzed reaction employing an ONIOM (QM:MM) model chemistry and involving 5368 atomic centers.

The Strongest Acid: Protonation of Carbon Dioxide

The strongest carborane acid, H(CHB11F11), protonates CO2 while traditional mixed Lewis/Brønsted superacids do not. The product is deduced from IR spectroscopy and calculation to be the proton disolvate, H(CO2)2(+). The carborane acid H(CHB11F11) is therefore the strongest known acid. The failure of traditional mixed superacids to protonate weak bases such as CO2 can be traced to a competition between the proton and the Lewis acid for the added base. The high protic acidity promised by large absolute values of the Hammett acidity function (H0) is not realized in practice because the basicity of an added base is suppressed by Lewis acid/base adduct formation.