Extract text from crystallographic information files (CIF)
To convert CIF data files to another format, you need Olex2 or other Data software.
To convert other file formats to the "Crystallography Data File" file type, you need software like Olex2 or a similar tool.
The .CIF file primarily stands for Crystallographic Information File, a standard text-based format developed by the International Union of Crystallography to store crystal structure data, atomic coordinates, and diffraction patterns. It is widely used by chemists and materials scientists. You can open these files using specialized software like Olex2, Mercury, or FullProf. A secondary, completely unrelated use for .CIF is the Catalog Interchange Format used by SAP Ariba for e-procurement product catalogs, and historically, as an Easy CD Creator disk image or Caltech Intermediate Form for integrated circuit layouts.
The main drawback of crystallographic .CIF files is their highly specialized nature. You cannot simply view a 3D crystal structure in a standard web browser or document reader. Sending a .CIF to a colleague who lacks crystallographic software means they will see a wall of raw text coordinates instead of a 3D molecular model. Similarly, Ariba catalog .CIF files are just structured text, but navigating them in basic text editors is slow and error-prone.
To make this data accessible, you must convert it. For 3D visualization and broad chemistry support, convert crystallographic .CIF to PDB (Protein Data Bank) or XYZ. If you need to present the data in a publication or on the web, convert the rendered structure to PNG or PDF. For Ariba catalog files, converting to CSV or XLSX makes them easy to audit in spreadsheets.
Convert.Guru analyzes your CIF file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted CIFF, GZ, TXT, PDF, BCIF, TIF, VESTA, ZIP, PDB, GIF, PNG, JPG and CIF_ files.
If you want to convert CIF file to PDB, MTZ, PDF, TXT, ISO, IMG, DMG, VHD, VMDK, VDI, HDD or QCOW, you can use Olex2 or similar software from the "Crystal Structure Data Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert VFD, DMG, OVA, IMA, VBOX, ADF, PVS, VHD, OVF, ISO, DSK or IMG files to CIF, try Olex2 or another comparable tool in the "Crystal Structure Data Storage" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our CIF converter.