Abstract
This paper is the outgrowth of lectures the author gave at the Physics
Institute and the Chemistry Institute of the University of Sao Paulo at Sao
Carlos, Brazil, and at the VIII'th Summer School on Electronic Structure of the
Brazilian Physical Society. It is an attempt to introduce density-functional
theory (DFT) in a language accessible for students entering the field or
researchers from other fields. It is not meant to be a scholarly review of DFT,
but rather an informal guide to its conceptual basis and some recent
developments and advances. The Hohenberg-Kohn theorem and the Kohn-Sham
equations are discussed in some detail. Approximate density functionals,
selected aspects of applications of DFT, and a variety of extensions of
standard DFT are also discussed, albeit in less detail. Throughout it is
attempted to provide a balanced treatment of aspects that are relevant for
chemistry and aspects relevant for physics, but with a strong bias towards
conceptual foundations. The paper is intended to be read before (or in parallel
with) one of the many excellent more technical reviews available in the
literature.
Users
Please
log in to take part in the discussion (add own reviews or comments).