Hierarchical Macromolecular Structures: 60 Years after the Staudinger Nobel Prize I

How did the idea of the macromolecule reshape chemistry—and what questions did it open for later generations of researchers? Hierarchical Macromolecular Structures: 60 Years after the Staudinger Nobel Prize I brings historical context and current-at-publication research together in a collection of specialist reviews edited by Virgil Percec.

Rather than treating polymer science as a single topic, the volume moves across its history, foundational concepts, and varied modern architectures. The result is a research-focused view of how molecular structure relates to materials, biological systems, and emerging areas of chemistry.

From Staudinger’s legacy to new polymer architectures

Several chapters revisit Hermann Staudinger’s influence: his place in polymer research, the importance of the macromolecular hypothesis, and the scientific and institutional history surrounding his work. Other contributions look forward, examining subjects such as adaptive polymers, biologically inspired complex systems, supramolecular assemblies, and dendritic structures.

Research themes across chemistry and materials science

• Macromolecular foundations: Historical and conceptual perspectives on the development of polymer science.
• Supramolecular and dynamic systems: Reviews of dynamers, coordination-driven macromolecules, and complex assemblies.
• Structure, function, and application: Work connecting polymers with medicine, biological-like systems, and magnetic-resonance investigations.
• New architectures: Discussion of dendritic and other hierarchical macromolecular forms.

The range of chapters lets readers approach the field from more than one direction: through its intellectual history, through particular chemical structures, or through the methods researchers use to investigate them.

A specialist reference with historical perspective

This is an edited scientific collection for polymer scientists and readers working in neighboring areas of chemistry and materials science. Graduate students may find the historical chapters useful for orienting themselves in the field, while researchers can consult the focused reviews for context on particular topics and their development.

Explore the ideas, structures, and research traditions that continue to shape macromolecular science in this volume of Advances in Polymer Science.