State-selective multireference coupled-cluster theory employing the single-reference formalism: Implementation and application to the H8 model system

The new state-selective (SS) multireference (MR) coupled-cluster (CC) method exploiting the single-reference (SR) particle-hole formalism, which we have introduced in our recent paper P. Piecuch, N. Oliphant, and L. Adamowicz, J. Chem. Phys. 99, 1875 (1993), has been implemented and the results of the pilot calculations for the minimum basis-set (MBS) model composed of eight hydrogen atoms in various geometrical arrangements are presented. This model enables a continuous transition between degenerate and nondegenerate regimes. Comparison is made with the results of SR CC calculations involving double (CCD), single and double (CCSD), single, double, and triple (CCSDT), and single, double, triple, and quadruple (CCSDTQ) excitations. Our SS CC energies are also compared with the results of the Hilbert space, state-universal (SU) MR CC(S)D calculations, as well as with the MR configuration interaction (CI) results (with and without Davidson-type corrections) and the exact correlation energies obtained using the full CI (FCI) method. Along with the ground-state energies, we also analyze the resulting wave functions by examining some selected cluster components. This analysis enables us to assess the quality of the resulting wave functions. Our SS CC theory truncated at double excitations, which emerges through selection of the most essential clusters appearing in the full SR CCSDTQ formalism SS CCSD (TQ) method provides equally good results in nondegenerate and quasidegenerate regions. The difference between the ground-state energy obtained with the SS CCSD(TQ) approach and the FCI energy does not exceed 1.1 mhartree over all the geometries considered. This value compares favorably with the maximum difference of 2.8 mhartree between the SU CCSD energies and the FCI energies obtained for the same range of geometries. The SS CCSD(T) method, emerging from the SR CCSDT theory through selection of the most essential clusters, is less stable, since it neglects very important semi-internal quadruple excitations. Unlike the genuine multideterminantal SU CC formalism, our SS CC approach is not affected by the intruder state problem and its convergence remains satisfactory in nondegenerate and quasidegenerate regimes.