An Ab Initio Correction Vector Restricted Active Space Approach to the L-Edge XAS and 2p3d RIXS Spectra of Transition Metal Complexes

[Image: see text] We describe an ab initio approach to simulate L-edge X-ray absorption (XAS) and 2p3d resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) spectroscopies. We model the strongly correlated electronic structure within a restricted active space and employ a correction vector formulation instead of sum-over-state expressions for the spectra, thus eliminating the need to calculate a large number of intermediate and final electronic states. We present benchmark simulations of the XAS and RIXS spectra of the iron complexes [FeCl(4)](1–/2–) and [Fe(SCH(3))(4)](1–/2–) and interpret the spectra by deconvolving the correction vectors. Our approach represents a step toward simulating the X-ray spectroscopies of larger metal cluster systems that play a pivotal role in biology.