Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) is an example of a reversible-deactivation radical polymerization. Like its counterpart, ATRA or atom transfer radical addition, it is a means of forming a carbon-carbon bond through a transition metal catalyst. As the name implies, the atom transfer step is the key step in the reaction responsible for uniform polymer chain growth. ATRP (or transition metal-mediated living radical polymerization) was independently discovered by Mitsuo Sawamoto and by Krzysztof Matyjaszewski in 1995.