Ab initio approach for many-electron systems without invoking orbitals: An integral formulation of density-functional theory

A new approach for the calculation of ground states of many-electron systems is proposed via an integral formulation of the Hohenberg-Kohn-Sham density-functional theory. Only equations for the total electron density are involved; orbitals are not employed. Exchange and correlation effects are incorporated. In place of the set of single-electron equations, the total electron density is explicitly expressed in terms of the Kohn-Sham effective local potential through multidimensional integrations. The development is based on the first-order density matrix as obtained from the one-body Green’s function in polygonal and Fourier path-integral representations. This might open up the possibility of ab initio calculations for molecules with very many electrons. It also provides explicit solutions to two long-standing problems: electron kinetic energy and momentum density as functionals of the total electron density. The formulation can also be used in calculations for general fermions.