Force constant Hartree-Fock method

Unfortunately, measured vibrational frequencies have some anharmonic component, and the vibrational frequencies computed in the manner above are harmonic. Thus, even the most accurate representation of the molecular structure and force constant will result in the calculated value having a positive deviation from experiment (Pople et al. 1981). Other systematic errors may be included in calculations of vibrational frequencies as well. For instance, Hartree-Fock calculations overestimate the dissociation energy of two atoms due to the fact that no electron correlation is included within the Hartree-Fock method (Hehre et al. 1986 Foresman and Frisch 1996). Basis sets used for frequency calculations are also typically limited (Curtiss et al. 1991) due to the requirements of performing a full energy minimization. Thus, errors due to the harmonic approximation, neglect of electron correlation and the size of the basis set selected can all contribute to discrepancies between experimental and calculated vibrational frequencies. 

Tripos a molecular mechanics force field, also the name of a company that sells computational chemistry software TST (transition state theory) method for computing rate constants UHF (unrestricted Hartree-Fock)... 

Optimize the structure of acetyl radical using the 6-31G(d) basis set at the HF, MP2, B3LYP and QCISD levels of theory. We chose to perform an Opt Freq calculation at the Flartree-Fock level in order to produce initial force constants for the later optimizations (retrieved from the checkpoint file via OptsReadFC). Compare the predicted spin polarizations (listed as part of the population analysis output) for the carbon and oxygen atoms for the various methods to one another and to the experimental values of 0.7 for the C2 carbon atom and 0.2 for the oxygen atom. Note that for the MP2 and QCISD calculations you will need to include the keyword Density=Current in the job s route section, which specifies that the population analysis be performed using the electron density computed by the current theoretical method (the default is to use the Hartree-Fock density). 

Therefore the scaling transformation of the quantum-mechanical force field is an empirical way to account for the electronic correlation effects. As far as the conditions listed above are not always satisfied (e.g. in the presence of delocalized 7r-electron wavefunctions) the real transformation is not exactly homogeneous but rather of Puley s type, involving n different scale constants. The need of inhomogeneous Puley s scaling also arises due to the fact that the quantum-mechanical calculations are never performed in the perfect Hartree-Fock level. The realistic calculations employ incomplete basis sets and often are based on different calculation schemes, e.g. semiempirical hamiltonians or methods which account for the electronic correlations like Cl and density-functional techniques. In this context we want to stress that the set of scale factors for the molecule under consideration is specific for a given set of internal coordinates and a given quantum-mechanical method. 

Hartree-Fock-Roothaan methods have often been quite successful in the calculation of properties despite the fact that the variational principle upon which they are based ensures only the best total energy. In particular, other energetic properties such as force constants and charge-distribution properties such as electron-density distributions and electric-field gradients are well reproduced. 

Table 3 presents relativistic effects on several properties calculated as the difference (A) obtained in calculations which included the quasirelativistic correction, and corresponding calculations that excluded the correction, and used Hartree-Fock-Slater core orbitals rather than Dirac-Slater. The method finds significant relativistic Pt-C bond shortening, and little effect on the CO bond. The effect on adsorption energy is dramatic. Eads increases by about 50% when relativity is included. There is also an increase in the Pt-C force constant and frequency. The shortened Pt-C bond results in an increase in CO frequency through a wall effect, a Pauli repulsion effect. Ref. 34 ascribed the anomalously small shift in CO frequency from gas phase to adsorbed on Pt to the relativistic effect. 

The connecting link between ab initio calculations and vibrational spectra is the concept of the energy surface. In harmonic approximation, usually adopted for large systems, the second derivatives of the energy with respect to the nuclear positions at the equilibrium geometry give the harmonic force constants. For many QM methods such as Hartree-Fock theory (HF), density functional methods (DFT) or second-order Moller-Plesset pertiubation theory (MP2), analytical formulas for the computation of the second derivatives are available. However, a common practice is to compute the force constants numerically as finite differences of the analytically obtained gradients for small atomic displacements. Due to recent advances in both software and computer hardware, the theoretical determination of force field parameters by ab initio methods has become one of the most common and successful applications of quantum chemistry. Nowadays, analysis of vibrational spectra of wide classes of molecules by means of ab initio methods is a routine method [85]. 

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