Seeking for parameter-free double-hybrid functionals: The PBE0-DH model

A new double hybrid functional is herein presented, in which the ratio of the Hartree-Fock, Kohn-Sham, and perturbation terms (MP2) is determined on the basis of physical considerations. This functional, denominated PBE0 Double Hybrid (PBE0-DH), contains a small MP2 contribution (12.5%) and it has been tested on a number of different molecular properties, including atomization energies, weak interactions, and reaction energies. From the obtained results, PBE0-DH seems to represent a significant improvement with respect to the parent PBE0 functional, a parameter-free hybrid. Overall its performances are comparable to the ones found using other parameterized double hybrids. From a more general point of view, our work points out that, already showed for classes of other functionals, reliable and general-purpose double hybrids can be obtained on purely theoretical bases, without the use of any empirical fitting.