Dr. Alexander Sartorius, aka Doctor Phosphorus, was a nuclear physicist who became a victim of a tragic accident. He was exposed to radioactive sand during an experimental nuclear reactor mishap, which fused phosphorus into his body on a molecular level. This accident turned him into a glowing, radioactive being whose touch could burn or poison anything. His disfigurement and resulting alienation fueled his descent into villainy. Feeling abandoned and betrayed he took it out on Gotham city.