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Project A10 (New): Population control of multiple walker simulations via a birth/death process Conventional Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations are generally unable to access the long-timescale phenomena that are common in nature. This timescale problem comes from the fact that a typical free energy landscape consists of many metastable states separated by high free energy barriers. If the barriers are much higher than the thermal energy, the system is kinetically trapped in some metastable state and barrier crossings will be rare events on the time scales that we can simulate. One strategy to alleviate this time scale problem is to employ collective variable (CV) based enhanced sampling methods such as metadynamics. A common way to improve the performance of CV-based methods is to employ multiple walkers that share a bias potential and collaboratively sample the free energy landscape. In this way, one reduces the wall-clock time for convergence and makes better […]

Dr. Yuki Nagata Max Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung Ackermannweg 10 D-55128 Mainz Tel: +49 6131 379380 Fax: +49 6131 379360 Mail: nagata@mpip-mainz.mpg.de Further information

Prof. Dr. Jürgen Gauss Department Chemie Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz Duesbergweg 10-14 D-55128 Mainz Tel: +49 6131 39 23736 Mail: gauss@uni-mainz.de Further information

Prof. Dr. Friederike Schmid Institut für Physik Universität Mainz Staudingerweg 9 D-55128 Mainz Tel: +49 6131 3920365 Fax: +49 5131 3920496 Secr: +49 6131 3920495 Mail: friederike.schmid@uni-mainz.de Further information

Prof. Dr. Omar Valsson Department of Chemistry University of North Texas 1155 Union Circle #305070 Denton, Texas 76203 Tel: +1 940 369 7593 Mail: omar.valsson@unt.edu Further information

Prof. Dr. Marialore Sulpizi Institut für Physik Universität Mainz Staudingerweg 7 D-55128 Mainz Tel: +49 6131 39 23641 Fax: +49 6131 39 25441 Mail: sulpizi@uni-mainz.de Further information

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Project C1: Using molecular fields to bridge between particle and continuum representations of macromolecular systems In this project, we explore the potential of so-called “molecular field” theories to bridge between particle-based and continuum representations of macromolecular materials. Regarding static equilibrium properties, they canbe linked to particle models via the well-established self-consistent field theory, a sophisticated density functional theory for polymers, and extensions thereof. Our goal is to design systematic mapping procedures for dynamic properties, i.e., devising dynamic density functionals (DDFs) of comparable quality. The work in the second funding period was motivated by a finding at the end of the first funding period, where we had identified severe shortcomings of the previously available DDF models. The central quantities in these DDF models are nonlocal mobility functions describing the response of the monomer current to a spatially varying field. We have devised a bottom-up method to construct these mobility functions from […]

Project B3: Coarse-graining of solvent effects in force-probe molecular dynamics simulations The study of the conformational kinetics of biomolecules and supramolecular complexes using molecular simulations often is complicated by the fact that these processes are very slow. Various simulation techniques have been developed in order to resolve this issue. One very efficient way to investigate the atomistic details of conformational changes is provided by force-probe molecular dynamics (FPMD) simulations. In the most common realization of this technique, one end of the (supra)molecular system under consideration is fixed in space and the other end is pulled apart with a constant velocity via the application of a harmonic potential. From the distributions of the forces needed to unfold the system important information regarding the kinetics and the thermodynamics of the relevant conformational rearrangements can be obtained via a statistical analysis. The direct comparison to the results of experimental realizations of force spectroscopy […]

Project B5: Multi-resolution methods including quantum chemistry, force fields, and hybrid particle-field schemes Multiscaling techniques that involve a quantum-chemical treatment of the electronic structure for the part with the highest resolution are promising computational tools. They are particularly useful for dealing with problems involving large systems like enzymes, membranes, polymers, etc., where, for example, chemical reactions take place. Having completed in the previous funding period of the TRR (i.e., the first funding period of this project) a corresponding QM/MM implementation that allows to include high-accuracy quantum-chemical methods from either coupled-cluster (CC) theory (i.e., CCSD, CCSD(T), etc.) or of multiconfigurational nature (i.e., CASSCF), we intend to complete the envisioned QM/MM/CG/hPF implementation that extends the QM/MM approach to coarse-grained (CG) treatments. In particular, we plan on using hybrid particle-field (hPF) theory based on its Hamiltonian reformulation, where the latter has been accomplished in the first funding period of this project. This reformulation […]