Horst Prinzbach

Prinzbach studied chemistry at the University of Freiburg and received his PhD under Arthur Lüttringhaus.

He joined William von Eggers Doering at Yale University for postdoctoral work.

Of his many research interests in organic chemistry, including photochemistry with unusual chromophores, synthesis of new carba-/hetera cages, radical cations, dications, total synthesis of aminoglycosid antibiotics, and enzymes, Prinzbach was probably best known for the pagodane route towards dodecahedrane.

[citation needed] In the course of his research, the phenomenon of σ-bishomoaromaticity was discovered as an extreme case of chemical bonding.

The final landmark the development of dodecahedrane chemistry over many years was the preparation and characterisation of C20 fullerene in the gas phase based on bromination-elimination reactions of dodecahedrane.