Chayen is best known for her invention of novel protein crystallization methods. In 1990, she first published a method of suspending droplets of protein solution and precipitant solutions in low-density paraffin oil to prevent evaporation during the microbatch crystallization process. The microbatch process can be suitable for membrane proteins, which are ordinarily difficult to crystallize. Chayen's method has since been applied towards the analysis of many biomolecules that are relevant to human diseases such as cancer, HIV, diabetes, and heart disease.
In addition to her work on microbatch methods, Chayen invented a novel gel-glass nucleant now known as "Naomis Nucleant." Naomis Nucleant has been used to crystallize more than 20 proteins, the most of any single nucleant. In 2015, she collaborated with Subrayal Reddy at University of Central Lancashire to develop the first non-protein nucleant, a semi-liquid molecularly imprinted polymer designed for high-throughput screening. The nucleant was commercialized as "Chayen Reddy MIP."
Chayen's current research interests include protein crystallization, structural biology, and structural genomics and proteomics.