{
  "abstract": "It is common wisdom that a better understanding of how to quantify electron correlation should lead to more efficient treatments of the correlation problem. Here, we not only substantiate this view but turn it into a concrete, systematic framework for ground states. Since prominent correlation measures such as the nonfreeness depend only on the one-particle reduced density matrix, modeling the correlation energy as a function of such a measure naturally places the framework within reduced density matrix functional theory, while keeping the cost at mean-field level. Strikingly, the variable conjugate to the measure emerges as a ``correlation temperature'', thereby connecting correlation measures, functional theory, and effective temperatures. The framework rationalizes methods such as i-DMFT, and we illustrate its key concepts analytically for the Hubbard dimer and numerically for small molecular systems. This brings a fundamental question within reach: how much of the correlation problem can be solved at mean-field cost?",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.22134",
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Paul G. Graf"
    },
    {
      "name": "Florian Matz"
    },
    {
      "name": "Markus Penz"
    },
    {
      "name": "Christian Schilling"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cf7e9xspme4t2.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.22134",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "cf7e9xspme4t2",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.22134",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.str-el"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "physics.chem-ph"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "quant-ph"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3107|Advanced Chemical Physics Studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7222717214",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.22134",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-15",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cf7e9xspme4t2.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:29:50Z",
      "native_id": "2610.22134",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.22134"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "arxiv:physics.chem-ph",
      "subfield": "physical"
    },
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.str-el",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    },
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:quant-ph",
      "subfield": "quantum"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Putting a Temperature on Electron Correlation",
  "title_text": "Putting a Temperature on Electron Correlation",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:29:50Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/cf7e9xspme4t2",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}