Time-dependent density functional theory on a lattice

Abstract

A time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) for a quantum many-body system on a lattice is formulated rigorously. We prove the uniqueness of the density-to-potential mapping and demonstrate that a given density is $v$-representable if the initial many-body state and the density satisfy certain well defined conditions. In particular, we show that for a system evolving from its ground state any density with a continuous second time derivative is $v$-representable and therefore the lattice TDDFT is guaranteed to exist. The TDDFT existence and uniqueness theorem is valid for any connected lattice, independently of its size, geometry and/or spatial dimensionality. The general statements of the existence theorem are illustrated on a pedagogical exactly solvable example which displays all details and subtleties of the proof in a transparent form. In conclusion we briefly discuss remaining open problems and directions for a future research.