Renormalized second-order perturbation theory for the electron correlation energy: Concept, implementation, and benchmarks

We present a renormalized second-order perturbation theory (rPT2), based on a Kohn-Sham (KS) reference state, for the electron correlation energy that includes the random-phase approximation (RPA), second-order screened exchange (SOSEX), and renormalized single excitations (rSE). These three terms all involve a summation of certain types of diagrams to infinite order, and can be viewed as renormalization of the second-order direct, exchange, and single-excitation (SE) terms of Rayleigh-Schrodinger perturbation theory based on a KS reference. In this work, we establish the concept of rPT2 and present the numerical details of our SOSEX and rSE implementations. A preliminary version of rPT2, in which the renormalized SE (rSE) contribution was treated approximately, has already been benchmarked for molecular atomization energies and chemical reaction barrier heights and shows a well-balanced performance [J. Paier et al., New J. Phys. 14, 043002 (2012)]. In this work, we present a refined version of rPT2, in which we evaluate the rSE series of diagrams rigorously. We then extend the benchmark studies to noncovalent interactions, including the rare-gas dimers, and the S22 and S66 test sets, as well as the cohesive energy of small copper clusters, and the equilibrium geometry of 10 diatomic molecules. Despite some remaining shortcomings, we conclude that rPT2 gives an overall satisfactory performance across different electronic situations, and is a promising step towards a generally applicable electronic-structure approach.