The behavior of molecules in space was a central research topic for Karl Schlögl. The Austrian chemist is considered a pioneer of stereochemistry. His experience at the University of Manchester led to the founding of his own research group in Vienna. From 1974 to 1990, he was head of the Institute of Organic Chemistry. The newly created Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Vienna in 1977 elected Schlögl as its first dean. At the Austrian Academy of Sciences, he was secretary general from 1991 to 1995, then vice president.
In addition to chemistry, Schlögl was also very successful in medicine; together at the Pharmacological Institute, he developed two pharmaceutical agents for increasing blood flow to the heart and brain, with which good healing results were and are achieved throughout Europe. His honors include the Erwin Schrödinger Prize and the Prize for Natural Sciences of the City of Vienna. He published more than 200 papers and held four patents.