The Laboratory of Organic Chemistry announces with great sadness that our SCS member, friend and colleague Prof. François Diederich passed away on September 23, 2020 after a battle with cancer. He was held in highest esteem across all areas of chemistry, both in academia and in industry.
François played a key role in shaping modern chemistry and was a very active community member. He was a force of nature, working with extraordinary vigor and tireless energy for the benefit of young scientists, his large family of scientific progeny, and his colleagues. Over a career lustrous in accomplishments, François has profoundly influenced the contemporary understanding of weak interactions in supramolecular and medicinal chemistry.
François will also be remembered for his personal warmth and joie de vivre. He will be sorely missed but his legacy will persist.
If you would like to send your condolences, please use the following e-mail address:
The Laboratory of Organic Chemistry at ETH Zurich will assemble all condolences in a condolence book in honor of François.
LOC obituary François Diederich in the NZZ (PDF)
ETH obituary François Diederich (PDF)
David Spichiger, SCS / LOC, ETH Zurich
30.09.2020