Overview - Calculation Viewer

The Calculation Viewer displays tabular and graphic summaries of the inputs and results associated with a single Ecce calculation. To enhance your interpretation of results, the properties of a chemical system can be viewed (as appropriate) in tables, graphs, and rendered 3D images. For some calculated dynamic or convergent-solution properties such as geometry, you can display step-by-step animations of the chemical system through the iterations of the calculation. Tables, graphic plots, and other detailed information appear in a summary list area. Rendered images of the chemical system with some property data appear in a scene viewer area.

Key Concepts: The Calculation Viewer provides convenient access to current information for a single calculation at any stage of setup or completion. Its many features for viewing and visualizing chemical system properties make it the primary Ecce tool for reviewing and interpreting calculation results. You can monitor a running calculation in real time. As new calculation data is generated, the data display in the Calculation Viewer is updated automatically.

The Calculation Viewer supports visualization of several vector and tensor quantities. In addition to dipole moments and normal modes, energy gradients are also displayed as atom-centered vectors, when available. Tensor quantities, such as the quadrupole moment, polarizability, or NMR shielding tensors, are displayed as a triad of orthonormal bipolar vectors oriented along the principle components of the tensor and scaled by the corresponding tensor eigenvalue.

Charges are indicated by blue and red coloring, with a zero charge indicated by white. As the charge goes from the most positive charge to zero, the color changes from fully saturated blue to a less saturated blue until the atom is white. While going to a negative charge, white slowly becomes a more saturated red color until the most negative charge is indicated by a fully saturated red.

Example of Mulliken charge coloring

Starting the Calculation Viewer

Calculation Viewer in the Ecce Gateway

Click on the Calculation Viewer icon in the Ecce Gateway. If the Calculation Viewer is already running, this will bring its window to the front. To start a separate instance of the Calculation Viewer in a separate window, shift-click on the icon.

In the Calculation Manager First select a calculation, then choose Calculation Viewer from the Tools menu.

The selected calculation is then displayed in the Calculation Viewer. Once the Viewer is open, you can view data for a different calculation by dragging the calculation from the Calculation Manager and dropping it on the drop site of the Viewer window. To start a separate instance of the Calculation Viewer and view a different calculation in a separate window, select the calculation in any of the tools above and then shift-click on the Calculation Viewer option in the corresponding Tools menu.

Tip: If you start the Calculation Viewer directly from the Ecce Gateway without first selecting a calculation, you will be able to open and view data files not stored in the Ecce Data Server. Currently, the only type of files supported are Gaussian Cube Formatted data files containing grid-type data. Cube files can be any type of data distributed on an ORTHOGONAL[em] grid (the cube file format supports non-orthogonal grids but these cannot be displayed within Ecce). Typical cube file data are molecular orbitals or electrostatic potentials. Cube files can be produced using either the Gaussian 98 suite of programs or NWChem.

The following items briefly describe elements of the Calculation Viewer window.

Summary List

The left side of the Calculation Viewer is a scrollable summary list of the calculation attributes and chemical system properties. Input attributes include the computational code, theory/runtype, chemical system atomic coordinates, the basis set, launch information (machine, queue, etc.), and non-default setup parameters. Output attributes and calculated properties are an open-ended data set that depends on the runtype and the current state of the calculation. Results can include (but are not limited to) scalar energies, moments, energy vectors, energy gradient magnitude, Mulliken charges, normal modes, molecular orbitals (MOs), and partial charges. Run statistics are a standard time-use output.
Picture... Summary List

Tip:Instead of scrolling to show wide data tables, you can increase the width of the summary list. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the area divider handle right or left. The handle appears near the lower right corner of the summary list.


A caption line for each list item includes control buttons, the item caption, and (in some cases) corresponding data. The currently selected list item is highlighted in black. Detailed information for any list item can be displayed by clicking on the list controls:

Tip: For convenient reference, you can move the data panel for any item out of the summary list and into an independent window. Right-click on the Float icon float icon to the right of the item caption. Click the Dock icon dock icon to restore the item to the summary list.

- Data Tables and Plots

Calculation inputs and results typically appear as tables in a data panel below the item caption. When the Calculation Viewer first opens, it displays the Chemical System table of atomic coordinates. Many properties such as Molecular Orbitals (MOs), Total Energy, and Geometry Trace may also be viewable as graphic plots. For those properties, clicking on the down arrow down arrow menu with the right mouse button opens a pop-up menu with an option to switch off the table and show a plot instead.

Picture... Plot and Table Examples
Note: The atomic coordinates shown in the Chemical System data panel for a completed calculation may be different than the original input values. To take advantage of symmetries and reduce the complexity of the calculation, computational codes may transform the chemical system coordinates to standard orientation. After this occurs, Ecce displays the transformed coordinates rather than the original values.

For some properties marked by a scene viewer button , you may be able to select cells or rows in the property table and see corresponding data in the scene viewer.

The pop-up menu opened by right-clicking on a data panel contains options that apply to the table or plot displayed. The current display (table or plot) can be printed. A table can be exported to a spreadsheet format. A plot may have scaling options. Menu options can include the following items:

  • Graph
  • Print
  • Export
How to... View/Print/Export Property Data

Chemical System Scene Viewer

The right side of the Calculation Viewer is a scene viewer that displays 3D rendered images of the calculation's chemical system and some of its properties. Properties in the summary list can be displayed in the scene viewer by clicking on the associated scene viewer button  and interacting with the corresponding data panel in the summary list.
Picture... Scene Viewer

- Scene Viewer Controls

Button Purpose
Select- Switch to the Select mode cursor (arrow) for selecting and highlighting components of the chemical system.
Tip: Keyboard Shortcuts
Esc key Toggle quickly between the Select and Manipulate modes.
Alt key In Select mode, switch the cursor to the Manipulate cursor as long as the Alt key is depressed.
Manipulate - Switch to the Manipulate mode cursor (hand) for rotating the chemical system in arbitrary directions around a center point ( left mouse button).
Note: It's a fine point, but these hand-cursor operations really manipulate only your viewpoint, NOT the items in the scene viewer. Their space coordinates remain constant as indicated in the Chemical System data panel.
Tip: In Manipulate mode only--depress the middle mouse button and drag to move (translate) the system in the (x,y) plane of the scene viewer.
The cursor switches to the Translate cursor (hand with object).
Tip: In Manipulate mode only--depress the  left + middle mouse buttons together (or Ctrl + ) and drag to dolly/zoom in the scene viewer.
The cursor switches to the Dolly cursor (pointing hand).
 
Tip: Do not try to select atoms to use with the following Length - Angle - Torsion measures while a calculation property is animating. Press Stop, select the atoms you are interested in, and then start the animation.

Length - After clicking on this button, select two atoms or a bond, or select and then click the button. The distance (in angstroms) between atom centers is displayed along a dashed line between the atoms.

Angle - After clicking on this button, select three atoms (one at a time) to define an angle. The measurement is displayed along a dashed line between the bonds.
Torsion - After clicking on this button, select four atoms (one at a time) to define a dihedral angle. The first three atoms define one plane, while the second three atoms define another plane. The measurement is displayed along with the planes that define the angle.
Cancel - Removes all displayed measures from the viewer.
Clipboard - Displays any image in the viewer in a separate clipboard window. You can place several different viewer images into the clipboard for comparison. Although you cannot modify an image in the clipboard, you can still manipulate it. The maximum number of images you can place on the clipboard is determined by the memory of your machine. You should probably not have more than 10 images on the clipboard at any one time. New measures are not copied to the clipboard.
Tip: If the orbital transparency is not displaying correctly, rotate the clipboard object.
Picture... Clipboard Example
Home - Reset the chemical system in the scene viewer to a "Home" orientation.
Tip: Home key Reset to "Home" orientation like the Home button.
Set Home - Establish the current chemical system orientation as the "Home" setting.
View All - Unzoom and center the chemical system to bring all components within the viewer area.
Seek - Switch to Seek cursor (cross hairs) for selecting an object as the view center point of the chemical system. After selection, the cursor returns to its previous mode.
Perspective View - This button indicates that the scene viewer is showing a perspective view: "closer" objects appear relatively larger. Clicking on this button toggles the scene viewer (and the button's icon) to the ortho view.
Ortho View - This button indicates that the scene viewer is showing an orthogonal view: objects appear a constant size, regardless of their front-to-back positioning. Clicking on this button toggles the scene viewer (and the button's icon) to the perspective view.

The following "thumbwheel" and slider controls are operated by dragging with the left mouse button.

Control Purpose
Dolly/Zoom Thumbwheel In perspective view, this thumbwheel is labeled "Dolly" and moves the point of view into (or out of) the depth of the scene viewer. In ortho view, this thumbwheel is labeled "Zoom" and merely enlarges or shrinks the size of the scene viewer image.
Tip: In Manipulate mode only--depress the  left + middle mouse buttons together (or Ctrl + ) and drag to dolly/zoom in the scene viewer.
The cursor switches to the Dolly cursor (pointing hand).
X This thumbwheel rotates the chemical system around the horizontal (X) axis at the current center of rotation.
Y This thumbwheel rotates the chemical system around the vertical (Y) axis at the current center of rotation.
Z This thumbwheel rotates the chemical system around the orthogonal (Z) axis at the current center of rotation.
Tip: To display X-Y-Z axes and make the thumbwheel rotations more clear, open the View menu and mark Axes.
Iso/Amplitude Slider For visualizing molecular orbitals and electron densities, the slider at the top of the scene viewer is labeled "Iso" and sets a value to be depicted as isosurfaces. For normal mode animations, the slider is labeled "Amplitude" and sets the amplitude of motion for the animation.

- Visualizable Properties

The following are key examples of calculation attributes and properties that can be visualized in the scene viewer.

Grids
If you start the Calculation Viewer from the Gateway, the Calculation Viewer will display the Grids property viewer, along with an Import button. This enables you to import a file with gridded data (a *.cube file) and view it in the Scene Viewer. Cube files are usually molecular orbitals or electrostatic potentials, but could be any property in a cube file with the appropriate 3D format.
Chemical System
When the Calculation Viewer first opens, the chemical system of the selected calculation appears in the scene viewer (if a chemical system has been specified for the calculation). The chemical system shows the last step for optimizations or the starting geometry if there are no steps or the transformed geometry if available. The general appearance of the chemical system and its atoms, bonds, and labels can be specified by using the Display menu and Chemical System menu on the window menu bar.

Measures can be added to the chemical system and viewed in all other properties. Measures can be viewed once a calculation has finished running. The measures buttons are located on the left edge of the scene viewer and permit you to display:

  • Length (the distance between two atoms)
  • Angles (between three atoms)
  • Torsions (between four atoms)
  • Cancel measures.
More about... Measures and their icons
(General Tables of Properties)
For many properties, you can select cells or rows in the property table and see corresponding data as text labels in the scene viewer. For example, for Mulliken charges you can select charge values in the table and see them display on the corresponding atoms of the chemical system.
Geometry Trace
Geometry trace results are visualized in an animation of the chemical system. Features include
  • buttons for playing and stopping the animation
  • forward and backward buttons for stepping through the geometry steps of the animation
  • capability to drag a set of coordinates to start a new calculation
  • the length of a time delay between the frame steps of the animated sequence
  • measures can be added and will update during animation
  • coordinates dislplayed in the Geometry Table will update during the animation.
Normal Modes
Vibrational normal modes are visualized in an animation of the chemical system. Animation controls include
  • buttons for playing and stopping the animation loop(s)
  • a choice of Vector or animation displays
  • capability to drag a set of coordinates to start a new calculation
  • graph of Raman or IR spectra
  • the number of animations (frame steps) in a complete sequence
  • the length of a time delay between the frame steps of the animated sequence
  • a slider (in the scene viewer) for setting the amplitude of motion
  • symmetry labels
  • coordinates dislplayed in the Geometry Table will update during the animation.
Mulliken Charges
Mulliken charges are visualized in a color spectrum on the model of the chemical system. Features include
  • display of the accumulating charges on the atom corresponding to the color spectrum.
  • ability to select charge values from the property table and see them display on the corresponding atoms of the chemical system.
  • mulliken shell charges are available for viewing if the system was computed by NWChem.
Molecular Orbitals (MOs)

Molecular orbitals are visualized for any molecular orbital selected one at a time from the data table. Spin densities are evaluated by subtracting the total electron density due to the alpha electrons from the total electron density due to the beta electrons. Note that even for unrestricted theories, this will only result in a nonzero spin density for open shell systems.

MO display controls include

  • an option to show coefficients (as a second table in the data panel) and to set a threshold cutoff value for ignoring coefficients that are below the threshold
  • A pull-down menu for selecting either table or energy level diagram graph display mode.
  • a pull-down menu for selecting a display mode:
    MO isosurfaces for one selected molecular orbital
    Density isosurfaces for total electron density (all occupied orbitals)
  • Spin Density is available if you have run an unrestricted theory (for example, UHF, UDFT, UMP2) .
  • a Compute button for computing the display images for the corresponding molecular orbital(s).
  • a slider (in the scene viewer) for setting the value that is depicted as isosurfaces.
  • symmetry labels.
Note: The Surface menu on the Calculation Viewer's menu bar is active only for MOs and contains several options for controlling the detail, extent, and appearance of isosurfaces.
Note: The threshold cutoff value applies to all calculations.

Molecular orbital energies are displayed in either a table or graphical form. The molecular orbital graph displays orbitals based on their relative energies. The orbitals are also color coded to show whether they are occupied, unoccupied, or, in the case of restricted-open shell systems, partially occupied. The orbitals can also be further separated into alpha and beta orbitals and into their different symmetry group representations.

Partial Charges

Partial charges are visualized in a color spectrum on the model of the chemical system. You can also view constraints and/or restraints added to the fitting algorithm. To copy the partial charges back to the original structure so that they can be used in further calculations, click the Assign Charges button. Partial charge data is extracted by Ecce from the <Calculation>.q file generated by NWChem.

Display controls include

  • display of the partial charges on the atom corresponding to the color specturm
  • ability to select charge values from the property table and see them display on the corresponding atoms of the chemical system.
  • ability to view the following after an ESP calculation
    • ESP: Charge fit to the Electrostatic Potential
    • CESP: Constrained charge fit to the Electrostatic Potential
    • RESP: Restrained charge fit to the Electrostatic Potential
    • CRESP: Constrained Restrained charge fit to the Electrostatic Potential.
Shielding Tensor

Shielding Tensors are visualized as a triad of orthonormal bipolar vectors oriented along the principle components of the tensor and scaled by the corresponding tensor eigenvalue. Features include

  • a pull-down menu that contains the options "By Atom"
  • a list of all elements in your system.

This makes it easy to view the tensors for all H atoms. You can select atoms in the table and you can also select them in the scene viewer.

Moments
Visual representations of the dipole and quadrapole moments are available. These provide a quick visual reference of how the moments are oriented relative to the molecular geometries.

The molecular polarizability is displayed using the principle components of the polarizability tensor. These are scaled by the relative magnitudes of the polarizability tensor eigenvalues. The display provides a quick method of identifying the highly polarizable orientations of the molecule.

Menu Bar

Each of the menus on the menu bar can be "torn off" as an independent window that remains visible while you work. To "tear-off" a menu, open the menu by clicking on the menu title and then choose the dashed line that separates the menu title from the menu options.
Tip: Open any menu from the keyboard by using the Alt+underlined letter combination (for example, Alt+h opens the Help menu). Then select a menu option by pressing the letter that corresponds to the option.

- Calculation Menu

View Input File... Open a window to display input file for the calculation. The input file of the calculation can be viewed but not edited.
View Output File... Open a window to display the output file for calculation. The output file of the calculation can be viewed but not edited.
Export...

Open a window for exporting the chemical system to a chemical system format (such as PDB, XYZ, MVM, and others) or to export the image in the scene viewer to a graphic file format (POV-Ray, Postscript, RGB, GIF, TIFF, or JPEG).

Image Capture

Capture an image or a sequence of images in the Scene Viewer. A series of captured images can be used for movies or animated GIF files for the web. You can capture a sequence of steps as in a geometry trace, or you can capture in real-time, as when you spin a scene. Image capture supports the following formats: POV-Ray, Postscript, RGB, GIF, TIFF and JPEG.

Tip: To use the equipment in the EMSL Graphics and Visualization Lab, you should save to RGB files. Set the size option to video.
Print ... Open a window for printing the displayed image to a selected printer.
Quit Close the Calculation Viewer window.
Tip: To end an Ecce session and close all tool windows at once, close the Gateway.

- Edit Menu

The Edit menu enables you to:
Select All Select all atoms in the work area.
Select Molecule Select the entire molecule or fragment associated with a single selected atom.
Reverse Selection Reverse the selection you just made - select everything except what you had currently selected.
Unselect All Unselect all atoms in the work area.
Select Within Radius... Select all atoms or residues within a defined radius of currently selected atom(s).

- Display Menu

The Display menu controls how the atoms and bonds of a chemical system are depicted in the work area. It also provides a 3D positioning tool for placing items in the work area.
Style (All) > Choose from a submenu to select a general display style for depicting atoms and bonds in the work area. (See also Details on this Display menu.)
Ball & Stick Ball & Wireframe
Stick (bonds) Wireframe (bonds)
CPK (space filling) Picture... Atom/Bond Styles
Style (Selected) > Choose from a submenu to select a display style for depicting all selected atoms and bonds in the work area.
Ball & Stick Ball & Wireframe
Stick (bonds) Wireframe (bonds)
CPK (space filling) Invisible
Render Quality > Choose from a submenu to select a quality level for rendering the atoms and bonds in the work area:
High  Medium As the rendering quality decreases, the rendering/display speed increases.
Low Very Low
Customize... Open a window of chemical system display attributes for modifying the appearance details of atoms and bonds. If the molecule is being rendered as a wireframe, you can control the line width. If you're using stick rendering, you can control the appearance of the stick endcaps, their quality, and their radius. Other options control the Ball & Stick quality.
Picture... Customize Details: Chemical System Display Options
Render as > Choose from a submenu to select how to render the surfaces of atoms in the work area:
Normal solid surface
Mesh polygon lattice
Dots dot lattice
Move as > Choose from an identical submenu to select which image rendering style is used as you move and manipulate the chemical system.
Note: This may be useful for speeding up the manipulation of a chemical system on slow hardware. Depending on your computing platform and details settings (below), the manipulation of the chemical system may be faster and smoother with Mesh or Dots.
Stereo Mark this option to see a stereo 3D image of the chemical system on workstations equipped with CrystalEyes® stereo viewing glasses.
Note: The monitor must first be enabled for stereo viewing by using a hardware-specific display command .
Depth Cueing Mark this option to simulate depth perspective: closer objects appear brighter than more distant objects. This is especially useful for viewing larger molecules.
Transparency When this option is marked, objects in the work area become partially transparent so that you can see how objects overlap.

- View Menu

The View menu enables you to show or hide hydrogen atoms and various labels in the scene viewer. It also provides an option to view the geometry in a tabular format.
Hydrogen Atoms Show/hide hydrogen atoms in the work area (if any).
Atom Labels Show/hide labels for all atoms in the work area.
Bond Labels Show/hide labels for all bonds in the work area.
Axes Show/hide a set of Cartesian axes that can be used as visual indicators within the work area.
Geometry Table... Display a table of geometry information and other details about the atoms of the current chemical system. The table displays atomic symbols, Cartesian coordinates, and Protein Data Bank (PDB) information if available. Selecting and highlighting row items in the table will select and highlight the corresponding atoms in the work area. The table dynamically updates as the system is animated.
Picture... Geometry Table

- Options Menu

The Options menu enables you to generate bonds for imported chemical systems, control details of the "clean" operation, set background and label colors, and use the special display features of the scene viewer.
Edit Background
Color...
Open a color chooser window for modifying the background color of the scene viewer.
Picture... Background Color Chooser Window
Edit Atom
Label Color...
Open a similar color chooser window for modifying the color of the labels (atomic symbols, bond lengths, etc.) in the work area.
Auto Normalize Display When this option is marked, the Builder recenters the chemical system as you work, continually orienting and scaling the chemical system to fit in the work area as you add or subtract structures. When turned off, no centering will be done except when changing calculations.
Enable Spinning When this option is marked, you can use the Manipulate mode cursor (hand) to impart a spin to a chemical system around its center of mass. To stop the spin, click anywhere in the scene viewer. Unmark this option to prevent accidental spinning.
Open All Property Data Show all detailed information in the summary list for all properties.
Collapse Property Data Show only the list of properties in the summary list area. Any detailed information being displayed in the summary list is removed from view. All tables and graphs are closed .

- Surface Menu

The Surface menu provides options for controlling the appearance of chemical system surfaces. This menu is available only when a property with associated surfaces (molecular orbitals--MOs) is selected in the summary list area of the window. The Hide, Slice, and Details options become available only after surfaces have been computed for display by using the Compute button on the MOs data panel.

Style options for rendered MO surfaces (see also Details on this menu)
Solid Mesh Contour
Picture... Surface Styles
Color options for rendered MO surfaces
Red/Green Red/Blue Blue/Yellow Light/Dark
Other Options
Hide Mark/unmark this option to hide/show the current surfaces in the chemical system viewing area.
Define Grid... Open a window for defining the 3D coordinate grid for which surface values will be computed for display in the scene viewer. The window enables you to define both the grid resolution (number of values along each dimension) and extent (limits of each dimension). Note that the amount of time required to compute a grid property increases rapidly with grid resolution.
Picture... 3D Grid Definition Window
Slice... Open a window for controlling grid slicer planes (XY, XZ, YZ) and colors. You can use these to highlight features of the chemical system.
Picture... Grid Slicer Example
Details... Open a window for setting the (solid) surface transparency from 0 (opaque surface) to 1 (invisible surface at 100% transparency).
Picture... Surface Details Window

- Run Mgmt Menu

The Run Management menu provides options for monitoring the progress of a running calculation and cleaning up files created by the calculation.

tail -f  on Output File... Open an xterm window that shows the contents of the output file for the current calculation so that you can monitor its progress in real time as it runs. The output file scrolls in the window as the calculation runs.
shell in Calculation Run Directory Open an xterm window into the scratch directory (on the machine that is running the calculation) where Ecce stores temporary files during processing. With the proper knowledge of UNIX and the computational code, you can monitor what is happening.
Terminate Calculation Stops the current calculation job.

- Help Menu

The Help menu provides access to this online help and enables you to supply feedback about your experience with Ecce.
Help on this tool Show online help information for this tool or window.
Support Display a form for providing support requests to your onsite Ecce representative or adminstrator about problems, questions, or other comments.
Note: Although your onsite Ecce administrator should be your first choice for problems and questions, you may address feedback or suggestions to the Ecce development team at ecce-support@emsl.pnl.gov.

Window Footer

At the bottom of the window is a footer that displays status information as well as a drop site for receiving calculation inputs that have been "dragged" from another tool:

More about... Items in the Ecce Window Footer
How to... Drag & Drop with the Mouse
  Display a Legend of Calculation State Icons

Ecce Online Help
Revised: May 11, 2004
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