Basic laboratory technique in organic chemistry plays a vital part in the education of chemistry students. This textbook contains a collection of multistep experiments that all feature one or two photochemical key steps. More than 40 researchers active in the field of organic photochemistry have contributed their favorite experiments for this unusual and modern textbook. In addition, a general section discusses reaction control, the interpretation of UV spectra, quantum yields and chemical yields, and gives information on solvents, lamps, filters, and vessels.

The experiments chosen fulfil the following criteria:
* starting materials are cheap and readily available
* the necessary photochemical equipment is available in (most) institutes
* products prepared are useful for further syntheses
* the light reaction is efficient.

'Photochemical Key Steps' is a source book of new ideas for supervisors of lab courses and gives students the opportunity to learn about modern techniques in the laboratory and about the important role photochemistry plays in organic synthesis.