The work of the chemists at the Pôle de l'Esplanade concentrates on the design of new molecules with a specific purpose and their chemical synthesis in the organic and inorganic fields. In this context, active research is being carried out in chemical topology, organometallic chemistry, catalysis and molecular recognition.

On the initiative of Professor Jean-Marie Lehn, Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1987, and with the support of local communities and the State, the ISIS (Institut de Science et d'Ingénierie Supramoléculaire (Institute of Supramolecular Science and Engineering)) was founded. The ISIS conducts multidisciplinary research into the interfaces between physics, chemistry and biology. It brings together:

• an international laboratory
• an industrial development satellite
• a nursery for talented young research scientists

With a building of 4,000 m² and cutting edge equipment, the ISIS has the means to attract the best research scientists in the world to reinforce the teams at its five specialised laboratories on an ongoing basis. The companies BASF, Oxyplus, Bruker Biospin, Alsachim have industrial laboratories within the ISIS.

Chemists based at the Faculty of Pharmacy in Illkirch have developed a dual culture which assists them in the design and implementation of molecular tools to provide answers to biological problems.

Research into the interface with biology in the field of medicine has been integrated, along with the École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (Strasbourg Higher School of Biotechnology)  (ESBS), into a Federative Research Institute which enables a considerable pooling of resources. In this context, the chemists in Illkirch have also played a pioneering role in the introduction to the Université Louis Pasteur of new technologies from industry, including the implementation of chemotheques and the robotisation of screening, which is used to test the therapeutic value of a very large number of active ingredients.

Research in the field of materials, new catalysts and polymers has led to applications at the interface of chemistry and physics, within the framework of the Pôle Matériaux d'Alsace.