Richard F. Heck

The Heck reaction forms carbon-carbon bonds using a palladium catalyst, often coupling aryl halides with alkenes. It became a standard tool in organic synthesis and pharmaceutical chemistry.

Richard F. Heck shared the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Ei-ichi Negishi and Akira Suzuki. The prize recognized palladium-catalyzed cross-couplings in organic synthesis.

Tsutomu Mizoroki independently reported related palladium-catalyzed coupling chemistry, so many chemists use the name Mizoroki-Heck reaction. The shorter 'Heck reaction' is still common in textbooks and lab discussions.

Heck spent a major part of his career at the University of Delaware. His work became especially influential because palladium-catalyzed couplings are widely used to build complex molecules efficiently.