The Team

Here are the people behind the chemistry

Terrance/Terry/T

Already spending most of his time writing in the office or agonising over what glassware to spend precious funding on, find out more about Terrys back ground here.

PostDocs

The ones doing the even harder work! Meet the PostDocs

Li Feng Lim

Cationic Group 14 Single-Centre Ambiphiles

Background and Publications

Contact

✉ lifeng.lim@anu.edu.au

⚐ CRC 2036

Dat Tien Nguyen

Alkaline-Earth Metal Chemistry

Background and Publications

Contact

✉ dattien.nguyen@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2036

PhD students

The ones doing all the hard work! Meet our PhD students

Till Kalkuhl

Gallium and Indium Metalloligand Transition Metal Systems

Background and Publications

B.Sc. – University Heidelberg (Prof. Dr. Lutz Greb), 2020

M.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Dr. Terrance Hadlington), 2022

PhD – joined in 01/2023



T. L. Kalkuhl, L. Qin, L. Zhao, G. Frenking, and T. J. Hadlington, Chem. Sci., 2023, 14, 11088-11095.

T. L. Kalkuhl, I. Fernandez, T. J. Hadlington, Chem2025, 11, 102349.

T. L. Kalkuhl, I. Fernandez, T. J. Hadlington, J. Am. Chem. Soc.2025, 147, 46373–46383.

Contact

✉ t.kalkuhl@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2035

Lisa Kreimer

Colorful Aryl-Phosphinidenes – Reactivity and optoelectronic Properties

Phosphorus(III) compounds are key ligands in transition-metal chemistry, whereas low-valent species such as phosphinidenes and diphosphenes provide more electron-rich coordination environments and diverse binding modes, including photoinduced isomerization. We work with carbene-stabilized bis-phosphinidene systems, describable as inversely polarized phosphaalkenes. Chelating derivatives undergo Ni-induced P-P homocoupling to form unprecedented bis-diphosphene macrocycles, alongside heterotetrametallic Cu/Ni assemblies. These low-valent phosphorus units also exhibit strong electronic coupling with conjugated π-systems, enabling tunable optical properties and access to phosphorus-containing chromophores at the interface of coordination chemistry and photoresponsive materials.

Background and Publications

B.Sc. – Technical University of Graz (Prof. Dr. Christoph Marschner), 2020

M.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Dr. Terrance Hadlington), 2022

PhD – joined in 01/2023



L. N. Kreimer, T. J. Hadlington, Chem. Sci.2024, 15, 14154-14160.

L. N. Kreimer, T. J. Hadlington, Eur. JIC2025, 28, e202400659.

Contact

✉ lisa.kreimer@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2035

Malte Kubisz

Alkaline-Earth Metals for Multi-Component Coupling Chemistry

Chemical catalysis plays a central role in our day-to-day lives, with 90% of synthetic industrial processes estimated to rely in part on a transition metal catalyst. However, these often come with traits of low elemental abundancies, high toxicities and conspicuous costs. In this light, we focus to move towards more sustainable and environmental benign chemistry by employing alkaline-earth metal systems in the heterofunctionalisation of alkenes and alkynes. One key focus here is the reactivity of phosphine-stabilised magnesium- and calcium hydride and alkyl complexes towards carbon oxides and their congeners.

Background and Publications

B.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Prof. Dr. Shigeyoshi Inoue), 2021

M.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Dr. Terrance Hadlington), 2023

PhD – joined in 02/2024



P. M. Keil, S. Ezendu, A. Schulz, M. Kubisz, T. Szilvási, T. J. Hadlington, J. Am. Chem. Soc.2024, 146, 23606–23615.

M. Kubisz, I. Fernandez, T. J. Hadlington, Chem. Commun.2026, 62, 7519-7523.

Contact

✉ malte.kubisz@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2035

Jonas Gilch

Group 13 and Group 14 Single-Centre Ambiphiles

Transition metals (TM) enable catalysis through variable oxidation states, which are tuneable via metal-ligand cooperativity. My research utilizes the Single-Center Ambiphile (SCA) concept, employing low-valent Group 13/14 centres (EI/IIE = Al-In; Sn) as non-innocent ligands. These ambiphilic centers exhibit simultaneous sigma-donating free electron pair, as well as at least one highly electrophilic vacant p-orbital. The unique electronic profile, when coordinating the ligand to a TM centre (Ni, Pd), facilitates cooperative small-molecule activation across the E-TM interface, providing a platform for unconventional catalytic pathways.

Background and Publications

B.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Prof. Dr. Tom Nilges), 2020

M.Sc. – Technical University of Munich (Dr. Mirza Cokoja), 2023

PhD – joined in 01/2024



J. M. Gilch, P. M. Keil, M. Iddrisu, T. Szilvási, T. J. Hadlington, Chem. Sci.2026, 17, 7938-7946.

Contact

✉ jonas.gilch@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2036

Emeric Schubert

Tripodal Group 14 Single-Centre Ambiphile Systems

Background and Publications

Contact

✉ emeric.schubert@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2036

Yuchao Liu

Cationic Group 14 Single-Centre Ambiphile Systems

Background and Publications

Contact

✉ yuchao.liu@tum.de

⚐ CRC 2035

Master Students

Our current Master Thesis students, pushing the boundaries of main group-transition metal chemistry (just for a slightly shorter time)

Previous Students

The students that have been through the Hadlington lab so far, all playing an important role in our chemistry!

Dr. Philip Keil
Single-Centre Ambiphile Ligands for Cooperative Bond Activation
⚐ Scientist @ Roche Diagnostics
Dr. Annika Schulz
Synthesis and Catalytic Utility of Cationic Chelating Tetrylene 3d-Metal Complexes
⚐ SAP Consulting @ SI PRO GmbH

Master Thesis Students

  • Laura Koutas (TUM)
  • Simona Hanuliaková (TUM) – Exploration of Donor-stabilized Phosphinidenes and Bis-Phosphinidenes towards Transition Metal Complexes
  • Malte Kubisz (TUM) – Evaluating Coordination-induced bond weakening in SCA complexes
  • Till Kalkuhl (TUM) – Group 13 Single-Centre Ambiphiles
  • Lisa Kreimer (TUM) – From donor-stabilized bis-phosphinidenes to macrocyclic, low-valent phosphorus compounds
  • Emeric Schubert (TUM) Higher-denticity tetrylene ligands
  • Anton ‘Toni’ Fischbacher (TUM) – GaI Single-Centre Ambiphile complexes of Ni0

Bachelor Thesis Students

  • Jonas Krapp (TUM) – Al Single-Centre Ambiphile Complexes of Iron
  • Laurin Scheibenbogen (TUM) – Towards Low-valent Xanthene-derived Phosphorus-Transition Metal Chemistry

Master Intern Students

Julian Zuber (TUM) • Kristof Hintzer (TUM) • Alexander Frantz (TUM) • Lena Schröck (TUM) • Richard Zell (TUM) • Emeric Schubert (TUM) • Tim Wellnitz (LIKAT Rostock) • Björn Smolka (TUM) • Malte Kubisz (TUM) • Till Kalkuhl (TUM) • Lisa Kreimer (TUM) • Tommy Andrijanic (TUM) • Yingzhe Nan (TUM) • Niklas Vogel (TUM) • Nico Liebl (TUM) • Christopher Dirr (TUM) • Sebastian Knaup (TUM) • Laurin Scheibenbogen (TUM)


Behind the scenes