Hans-Jörg Himmel

Professor Hans-Jörg Himmel leads the Chair I of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Heidelberg's Faculty of Chemistry and Geosciences. His research group focuses on fundamental science at the intersection of inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry, developing redox-active guanidines and boron compounds for catalytic applications while studying metal clusters through matrix isolation techniques.

• Chair of Inorganic Chemistry I
• Institute of Inorganic Chemistry
• University of Heidelberg, Germany

Research interests span three major domains:

• Redox-Active Guanidines: Coordination chemistry of guanidine ligands enabling proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) and valence tautomerism in copper complexes
• Nucleophilic Diboranes: Synthesis of highly charged oligoboron compounds for bond activation reactions including CO₂ reduction
• Matrix Isolation Studies: Investigating intrinsic properties of reactive metal atoms/clusters through spectroscopic characterization of isolated species

The group's publication trends reveal expertise in:

• Design of redox-active ligands (guanidines, crown ethers)
• Metal-ligand electron transfer mechanisms
• Catalytic systems using copper-guanidine complexes
• Matrix isolation for studying bare metal clusters
• Boron chemistry with small HOMO-LUMO gap compounds
• Proton-coupled electron transfer processes

Joining opportunities for Master's and PhD candidates exist in synthesis, catalysis, and spectroscopy projects. The group maintains a home-built matrix isolation apparatus at 4 K, enabling analysis of reactive intermediates through UV-Vis and high-resolution spectroscopy. Collaborations include SFB 1249 "N-Heteropolyzyklen als Funktionsmaterialien" and international partnerships with teams in molecular surface science.