Convergence Analysis of the Wolf Method for Coulombic Interactions

TL;DR

This paper provides a rigorous proof that the Wolf method for electrostatic calculations in periodic lattices converges to the same result as the established Ewald method, ensuring its validity for computational physics.

Contribution

The paper offers the first rigorous proof of convergence for the Wolf method, demonstrating its equivalence to the Ewald method in periodic lattice electrostatics.

Findings

Wolf method converges to Ewald method results

Proof applies to arbitrary lattice structures

Validates Wolf method as a reliable alternative

Abstract

A rigorous proof for convergence of the Wolf method for calculating electrostatic energy of a periodic lattice is presented. In particular, we show that for an arbitrary lattice of unit cells, the lattice sum obtained via Wolf method converges to the one obtained via Ewald method.