The effective energy transformation scheme as a special continuation approach to global optimization with application to molecular conformation

This paper discusses a generalization of the function transformation scheme for global energy minimization applied to the molecular conformation problem. A mathematical theory for the method as a special continuation approach to global optimization is established. We show that the method can transform a nonlinear objective function into a class of gradually deformed, but {open_quote}smoother{close_quote} or {open_quotes}easier{close_quote} functions. An optimization procedure can then be applied to the new functions successively, to trace their solutions back to the original function. Two types of transformation are defined: isotropic and anisotropic. We show that both transformations can be applied to a large class of nonlinear partially separable functions including energy functions for molecular conformation. Methods to compute the transformation for these functions are given