Reformulation of Density Functional Theory for N-representable Densities and the Resolution of the V-Representability Problem

Density functional theory for the case of general, N-representable densities is reformulated in terms of density functional derivatives of expectation values of operators evaluated with wave functions leading to a density, making no reference to the concept of potential. The developments provide proof of existence of a mathematical procedure that determines whether a density is v-representable and in the case of an affirmative answer determines the potential (within an additive constant) as a derivative with respect to the density of a constrained search functional. It also establishes the existence of an energy functional of the density that, for v-representable densities, assumes its minimum value at the density describing the ground state of an interacting many-particle system. The theorems of Hohenberg and Kohn emerge as special cases of the formalism. Numerical results for one-dimensional non-interacting systems illustrate the formalism. Some direct formal and practical implications of the present reformulation of DFT are also discussed.