Supported experimental instruments & formats

NOMAD can import experimental data from the instruments and file formats below using FAIRmat-developed plugins. Each entry identifies a supported instrument, format, or software family and the technique it serves.

51 instrument & format entries

21 techniques

11 plugin entry points

Last updated: October 22, 2026

How to read this list

File requirements can include sidecar files or packaged archives; expand an entry for available notes and the source of its support information. Automatic recognition means NOMAD can recognize the uploaded files directly. NeXus converter means the data is imported through a converter based on a NeXus application definition.

Find an instrument, technique, plugin, or file type Sort

Showing 51 entries

Instrument or format	File type(s)	Technique	Import route	Links
AXON Protochips Plugin pynxtools-em	`ZIP containing PNG set`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Not plain standalone PNG; expects ZIP archive with Protochips PNG metadata. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
FEI legacy Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Legacy FEI TIFF parser. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
EDAX APEX Plugin pynxtools-em	`EDAXH5 / HDF5 (typically .edaxh5)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Overview docs are sparse; parser support is present in source. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
EDAX OIM Analysis Plugin pynxtools-em	`O(H)5 / HDF5 (.oh5, .h5)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active parser in reader dispatch; not prominently listed in your original table. Support evidence Source-supported Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Gatan DigitalMicrograph Plugin pynxtools-em	`.dm3, .dm4`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Warning text mentions DM5, but extension check is DM3/DM4. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Hitachi Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF + TXT sidecar`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Needs paired TIFF and TXT with matching basename. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
JEOL Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF (+ optional .txt sidecar)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Parser can use JEOL-associated TXT sidecar when present for richer metadata. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
SerialEM / tomography workflows Plugin pynxtools-em	`MRC (+ optional/required sidecars: .mrc.mdoc, .rawtlt, .shifts, .xml)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Supports multiple MRC modes, including MRC-only. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Nion Co. Plugin pynxtools-em	`.zip or .nsproj containing NDATA + HDF5 (.h5/.hdf/.hdf5)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Better described as Nion project containers, not just raw NDATA/HDF5 files. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Point Electronic DISS Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes DISS TIFF parser. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
TESCAN Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF (+ optional .hdr sidecar)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Works with TIFF alone; HDR used as fallback/augmentation. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
ThermoFisher Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes TFS TIFF parser. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
ThermoFisher Velox Plugin pynxtools-em	`EMD (HDF5-backed)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Requires .emd and HDF5 magic header. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Zeiss Plugin pynxtools-em	`TIFF`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Zeiss TIFF parser. Support evidence Documentation Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Bruker Esprit Plugin pynxtools-em	`HDF5 (.h5)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active parser in reader dispatch. Support evidence Source-supported Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Oxford Instruments H5OINA Plugin pynxtools-em	`H5OINA (.h5oina)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active parser in reader dispatch. Support evidence Source-supported Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
MTEX output family Plugin pynxtools-em	`.mtex.h5, .mtex.hdf5`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Specialized parser for MTEX-produced HDF5 outputs. Support evidence Source-supported Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Diffraction pattern set (example workflow) Plugin pynxtools-em	`ZIP of image set (supported formats in parser examples)`	Electron microscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Example-oriented parser, but active in reader dispatch. Support evidence Source-supported Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
mtex-toolbox (MTex) workflow Plugin pynxtools-microstructure	`MTex pipeline outputs to NeXus/HDF5 (.nxs, .h5; scripts also reference .mtex.h5)`	Microstructure / EBSD texture analysis	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Reader is registered for NXem; no strict mainfile matcher implemented yet. MTex scripts indicate EBSD inputs like .ang, .osc, .ctf, .crc routed into NeXus/HDF5 export. Support evidence Direct dev input + code-backend Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Scienta Omicron Plugin pynxtools-xps	`.txt, .ibw, .h5, .hdf5`	XPS	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active reader imports ScientaTXTParser, ScientaIgorParser, ScientaHDF5Parser; docs explicitly list the same formats. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
SPECS / SpecsLabProdigy (+ SpecsLab 2 XML) Plugin pynxtools-xps	`.sle, .xml, .xy`	XPS	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active reader imports SPECSSLEParser, SPECSXMLParser, SPECSXYParser; .xml is documented as SpecsLab 2. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
PHI Electronics VersaProbe 4 / PHI MultiPak Plugin pynxtools-xps	`.spe, .pro`	XPS	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active reader imports PHIParser; docs describe .spe (single spectrum) and .pro (profiles/scans). Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
VAMAS ISO 14976 Plugin pynxtools-xps	`.vms, .npl`	XPS / surface analysis	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes VamasParser supports both .vms and .npl. Additional CasaXPS routes exist: standalone TXT via VamasExportParser (.txt) and quant/results metadata via VamasResultParser (.csv, metadata parser). Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Kratos AXIS Ultra / Nova / Supra / related Plugin pynxtools-xps	`.vms (via VAMAS)`	XPS	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Kratos is handled through VAMAS comment-block metadata parsing. There is a KratosParser module, but it is not active in XPSReader dispatch and is marked TODO/incomplete in source. Support evidence Documentation via VAMAS comment metadata path Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Woollam VASE Plugin pynxtools-ellips	`.dat (measurement file, provided via ELN/YAML filename)`	Ellipsometry	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Docs/reference list Woollam .dat. In code, the reader consumes ELN/YAML plus tabular data via pandas.read_csv; there is no strict .dat extension gate in reader.py, so practical support is “Woollam-style tabular export configured through YAML”. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed (single active reader) Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Generic community / vendor reconstruction+ranging formats Plugin pynxtools-apm	`Reconstruction: .apt, .pos, .epos, .ato, .csv, .h5, .hdf5 • Ranging: .rrng, .rng, .env, .fig.txt, range_.h5, .analysis, .analysisset, .hdf5`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active dispatch is through IfesReconstructionParser + IfesRangingDefinitionsParser. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Universität Stuttgart Inspico / (M)-TAP / APyT Plugin pynxtools-apm	`.raw, _trimmed.txt, _xyz.txt`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes “plugin-specific file formats” can be made explicit with these suffixes. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
PoSAP / Oxford position-sensitive atom probe Plugin pynxtools-apm	`.ops`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Parsed via reconstruction wrapper (ReadOpsFileFormat). Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Imago / AMETEK / Cameca / IVAS Plugin pynxtools-apm	`.analysis (XML analysis state)`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes This is specifically .analysis, not arbitrary XML. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
AP Suite Plugin pynxtools-apm	`.analysisset (XML)`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Ranging definitions route. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
AMETEK / Cameca Plugin pynxtools-apm	`.hdf5 (Cameca HDF5); plus .h5/range_.h5 in pyccapt routes`	Atom probe / FIM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes camecaroot docs explicitly say CernROOT-family (.root, .rraw, .rhit, .hits, .str) is currently not processable. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
FHI Berlin MPES instruments Plugin pynxtools-mpes	`.h5, .hdf5 (data) + .yaml/.yml (ELN metadata) + .json (config mapping)`	MPES / ARPES	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Reader is currently a single MPES HDF5-to-xarray path plus ELN/config side inputs; supports NXmpes and NXmpes_arpes. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Nanonis Generic Plugin pynxtools-spm	`.sxm`	SPM: STM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active path: experiment_technique == "STM" + raw ext sxm. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Omicron Plugin pynxtools-spm	`.sm4`	SPM: STM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active path: experiment_technique == "STM" + raw ext sm4. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Nanonis Generic Plugin pynxtools-spm	`.dat`	SPM: STS	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active path: experiment_technique == "STS" + raw ext dat. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Nanonis Generic Plugin pynxtools-spm	`.sxm`	SPM: AFM	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Active path: experiment_technique == "AFM" + raw ext sxm. Support evidence Documentation and code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
ELN/config side inputs Plugin pynxtools-spm	`.yaml/.yml (required ELN), optional .json config`	SPM orchestration	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Reader requires ELN and raw file; config JSON is optional. Technique is read from ELN experiment_technique. Support evidence Code-backed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Raman Open Database (ROD) Plugin pynxtools-raman	`.rod`	Raman spectroscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes Routed by RamanReader extension map to RodParser; theoretical-spectrum RODs are explicitly skipped. Support evidence Source-code + tests confirmed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
WITec Alpha (ASCII export workflow) Plugin pynxtools-raman	`.txt (+ optional/typical ELN .yml/.yaml, config .json)`	Raman spectroscopy	NeXus converter	Plugin website
Notes .txt parsing implemented in witec_reader; examples/docs use accompanying ELN YAML for metadata enrichment. Support evidence Source-code + tests confirmed Parser integration Create from schema -> NexusDataConverter
Malvern Panalytical / PANalytical X’Pert family Plugin nomad-measurements.xrd	`.xrdml`	XRD	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Explicitly matched in xrd parser entry point; overlaps in domain scope with pynxtools-xrd Support evidence Source-code confirmed (entry point regex) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Bruker D8 / Bruker XRD ecosystem Plugin nomad-measurements.xrd	`.brml`	XRD	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Explicitly matched in xrd parser entry point; overlaps in domain scope with pynxtools-xrd Support evidence Source-code confirmed (entry point regex) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Bruker RAW v4 instruments/software Plugin nomad-measurements.xrd	`.raw`	XRD	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Parser checks binary magic RAW4.00; overlaps in domain scope with pynxtools-xrd Support evidence Source-code confirmed (entry point + RAW4 header check) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Rigaku SmartLab / Rigaku ecosystem Plugin nomad-measurements.xrd	`.rasx`	XRD	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Explicitly matched in xrd parser entry point; overlaps in domain scope with pynxtools-xrd Support evidence Source-code confirmed (entry point regex) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
PerkinElmer UV WinLab ecosystem Plugin nomad-measurements.transmission	`.asc`	UV-Vis-NIR transmission spectroscopy	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Requires .asc and content starting with PE UV Support evidence Source-code confirmed (entry point + content regex) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design MultiVu ecosystem Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	Physical property / magnetometry / transport	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Base family represented via app-tagged .dat routes Support evidence Source-code confirmed (multiple typed parsers) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design MultiVu Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.seq`	Quantum Design sequencing / automation	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Standalone sequence parser Support evidence Source-code confirmed (dedicated entry point) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design ETO Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	Electrical transport option (ETO)	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Content marker: BYAPP, Electrical Transport Option Support evidence Source-code confirmed Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design ACT Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	ACT measurements	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Content marker: BYAPP, ACTRANSPORT Support evidence Source-code confirmed Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design ACMS Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	AC magnetic susceptibility	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Content marker: BYAPP, ACMS Support evidence Source-code confirmed Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design MPMS Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	Magnetometry	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Content marker: BYAPP, MPMS Support evidence Source-code confirmed (not just docs mention) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)
Quantum Design resistivity mode Plugin nomad-measurements.quantumdesign	`.dat`	Resistivity measurements	Automatic recognition	Plugin website
Notes Content marker: BYAPP, Resistivity Support evidence Source-code confirmed (not just docs mention) Parser integration Auto-detection (MatchingParser)