Sahil Gulania, James Daniel Whitfield
Abstract
The Hartree-Fock problem provides the conceptual and mathematical underpinning of a large portion of quantum chemistry. As efforts in quantum technology aim to enhance computational chemistry algorithms, the fundamental Hartree-Fock problem is a natural target. While quantum computers and quantum simulation offer many prospects for the future of modern chemistry, the Hartree-Fock problem is not a likely candidate. We highlight this fact from a number of perspectives including computational complexity, practical examples, and the full characterization of the energy landscapes for simple systems.