Theoretical analysis of the long-distance limit of NMR chemical shieldings

After some years of controversy, it was recently demonstrated how to obtain the correct long-distance limit [point-dipole approximation (PDA)] of pseudo-contact nuclear magnetic resonance chemical shifts from rigorous first-principles quantum mechanics [Lang et al., J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 11, 8735 (2020)]. This result confirmed the classical Kurland–McGarvey theory. In the present contribution, we elaborate on these results. In particular, we provide a detailed derivation of the PDA both from the Van den Heuvel–Soncini equation for the chemical shielding tensor and from a spin Hamiltonian approximation. Furthermore, we discuss in detail the PDA within the approximate density functional theory and Hartree–Fock theories. In our previous work, we assumed a relatively crude effective nuclear charge approximation for the spin–orbit coupling operator. Here, we overcome this assumption by demonstrating that the derivation is also possible within the fully relativistic Dirac equation and even without the assumption of a specific form for the Hamiltonian. Crucial ingredients for the general derivation are a Hamiltonian that respects gauge invariance, the multipolar gauge, and functional derivatives of the Hamiltonian, where it is possible to identify the first functional derivative with the electron number current density operator. The present work forms an important foundation for future extensions of the Kurland–McGarvey theory beyond the PDA, including induced magnetic quadrupole and higher moments to describe the magnetic hyperfine field.