An “optimal” spawning algorithm for adaptive basis set expansion in nonadiabatic dynamics

Abstract

The full multiple spawning (FMS) method has been developed to simulate quantum dynamics in the multistate electronic problem. In FMS, the nuclear wave function is represented in a basis of coupled, frozen Gaussians, and a “spawning” procedure prescribes a means of adaptively increasing the size of this basis in order to capture population transfer between electronic states. Herein we detail a new algorithm for specifying the initial conditions of newly spawned basis functions that minimizes the number of spawned basis functions needed for convergence. “Optimally” spawned basis functions are placed to maximize the coupling between parent and child trajectories at the point of spawning. The method is tested with a two-state, one-mode avoided crossing model and a two-state, two-mode conical intersection model.