12.4 Locally-Projected SCF Methods

12.4.2 Roothaan-Step Corrections to the FRAGMO Initial Guess

For some systems good accuracy for the intermolecular interaction energies can be achieved without converging SCF MI calculations and applying either the RS or ARS charge-transfer correction directly to the FRAGMO initial guess. Set FRGM_METHOD to NOSCF_RS or NOSCF_ARS to request the single Roothaan correction or approximate Roothaan correction, respectively. To get a somewhat better energy estimate set FRGM_METHOD to NOSCF_DRS and NOSCF_RS_FOCK. In the case of NOSCF_RS_FOCK, the same steps as in the NOSCF_RS method are performed followed by one more Fock build and calculation of the proper SCF energy. In the case of the double Roothaan-step correction, NOSCF_DRS, the same steps as in NOSCF_RS_FOCK are performed followed by one more diagonalization. The final energy in the NOSCF_DRS method is evaluated as a perturbative correction, similar to the single Roothaan-step correction.

Charge-transfer corrections applied directly to the FRAGMO guess are included in Q-Chem to test accuracy and performance of the locally-projected SCF methods. However, for some systems they give a reasonable estimate of the binding energies at a cost of one (or two) SCF step(s).