XYZ to SDF Converter
XYZ gives you coordinates only. SDF adds the atom-to-atom bonding that most viewers and databases need to render and index the structure.
The missing piece: bonds
An XYZ file is a bare coordinate list — no bonds, no charges, no metadata. Converting to SDF requires perceiving bonds from interatomic distances, then assigning bond orders from valence rules. The result is a V2000 block that opens in any structure viewer.
Where this is reliable
Clean geometries of organic and main-group molecules — typically optimised structures from quantum chemistry. Bond perception works well because the geometry is already at a minimum.
Where it is not
Transition metals, unusually long or short bonds, and highly distorted snapshots from dynamics runs can produce wrong bond orders. Check the output before trusting it.