Xavier Roy

Xavier Roy serves as Professor of Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at Columbia University's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. His research laboratory focuses on creating atomically-precise inorganic materials through the design and assembly of molecular clusters as artificial atoms.

Professor Roy's research interests center on inorganic materials chemistry, specifically developing nanoscale analogs of atoms that can be assembled into functional electronic and magnetic materials. His group investigates how chemical and physical principles govern the organization of molecular clusters into nanostructured materials, with particular focus on compounds near phase transition boundaries that respond to external stimuli like light, pressure, or electromagnetic fields. Current projects include developing synthetic approaches for precise nanostructures such as nanowires and monolayers, and creating luminescent molecular cluster probes for visualizing neurotransmitter release.

His publication record demonstrates consistent output in high-impact journals, with research spanning superatomic crystals, thermal transport phenomena, molecular electronics, and cluster-based material design. The work shows strong interdisciplinary connections between chemistry, physics, and materials science, with particular emphasis on creating materials with tunable electronic, optical, and magnetic properties through atomic-level control.

Students in Professor Roy's research group gain experience across chemical synthesis, structural characterization, physical property measurement, and device fabrication techniques. His laboratory maintains active collaborations with researchers across multiple institutions, as evidenced by the co-authorship patterns in his publications.

Professor Roy maintains an active research laboratory with the website roy-labs.com, where current projects and group members are featured. His work represents a unique approach to materials design by treating molecular clusters as customizable building blocks for creating novel functional materials.