Hermann Staudinger

Hermann Staudinger
Born	(1881-03-23)23 March 1881 Worms, German Empire
Died	8 September 1965(1965-09-08) (aged 84) Freiburg, West Germany
Alma mater	Technische Universität Darmstadt, University of Halle
Known for	Ketenes Polymer chemistry Staudinger coupling Staudinger reaction Staudinger synthesis
Spouse	Magda Staudinger (née Woit)
Awards	Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1953) Rudolf Diesel Medal (1962)
Scientific career
Fields	Organic and Polymer chemistry
Institutions	University of Strasbourg University of Karlsruhe ETH Zürich University of Freiburg
Thesis	Anlagerung des Malonesters an ungesättigte Verbindungen  (1903)
Doctoral advisor	Daniel Vorländer
Doctoral students	Werner Kern Tadeusz Reichstein Leopold Ružička Rudolf Signer

Hermann Staudinger (German pronunciation: [ˈhɛʁman ˈʃtaʊ̯dɪŋɐ] ^ⓘ; 23 March 1881 – 8 September 1965) was a German organic chemist who demonstrated the existence of macromolecules, which he characterized as polymers. For this work he received the 1953 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

He is also known for his discovery of ketenes and of the Staudinger reaction. Staudinger, together with Leopold Ružička, also elucidated the molecular structures of pyrethrin I and II in the 1920s, enabling the development of pyrethroid insecticides in the 1960s and 1970s.