The CIS(D) excited state procedure is a second-order perturbative approximation to the computationally expensive CCSD, based on a single excitation configuration interaction (CIS) reference. The coupled-cluster wave function, truncated at single and double excitations, is the exponential of the single and double substitution operators acting on the Hartree-Fock determinant:
| (7.41) |
Determination of the singles and doubles amplitudes requires solving the two equations
| (7.42) |
and
| (7.43) |
which lead to the CCSD excited state equations. These can be written
| (7.44) |
and
| (7.45) |
This is an eigenvalue equation for the transition amplitudes ( vectors), which are also contained in the operators.
The second-order approximation to the CCSD eigenvalue equation yields a second-order contribution to the excitation energy which can be written in the form
| (7.46) |
or in the alternative form
| (7.47) |
where
| (7.48) |
and
| (7.49) |
The output of a CIS(D) calculation contains useful information beyond the CIS(D) corrected excitation energies themselves. The stability of the CIS(D) energies is tested by evaluating a diagnostic, termed the “theta diagnostic”.849 The theta diagnostic calculates a mixing angle that measures the extent to which electron correlation causes each pair of calculated CIS states to couple. Clearly the most extreme case would be a mixing angle of , which would indicate breakdown of the validity of the initial CIS states and any subsequent corrections. On the other hand, small mixing angles on the order of only a degree or so are an indication that the calculated results are reliable. The code can report the largest mixing angle for each state to all others that have been calculated.