Review: progress in NLTE calculations and their application to large data-sets

Abstract: One of the major tasks in interpretation of data from large-scale stellar surveys is to determine the fundamental atmospheric parameters such as effective temperature, surface gravity, and metallicity. In most on-going and upcoming projects, they are derived spectroscopically, with relying on classical one-dimensional (1D) model atmospheres and the assumption of LTE. This review discusses the present achievements and problems of non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (NLTE) line-formation calculations for FGK-type stars. The topics that are addressed include (i) the construction of comprehensive model atoms for the chemical elements with complex term system, (ii) possible systematic errors inherent in classical LTE spectroscopic determinations of stellar parameters and chemical abundances, (iii) the uncertainties in final NLTE results caused by the uncertainties in atomic data, and (iv) applications of the NLTE line-formation calculations coupled to the spatial and temporal average <3D> models to spectroscopic analyses.