The International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR) established the IIR Magnetic Cooling Working Party in 2004, with the inaugural conference held in Montreux, Switzerland, in 2005. The primary goal was to bring together materials scientists and engineers working in the field of magnetic cooling. Rapid advancements in other caloric technologies led to a growing number of participants at subsequent conferences. This growth eventually prompted a transition to include all caloric technologies under the umbrella of the so-called THERMAG conferences, which have since become a well-recognized and distinguished conference series dedicated to all caloric effects.

In 2022, the IIR decided to broaden its scope to encompass all solid-state technologies, aiming to enhance technology transfer across various disciplines, including cryogenics, refrigeration, heat pumping, energy harvesting, thermal management, thermal storage, and sensorics. Consequently, the new IIR Working Group on Solid-State Cooling and Heating was established. This group continues the THERMAG conference series, now enriched with a wider range of solid-state phenomena, to foster the development of practical applications and strengthen collaboration between research and industry.

• Magnetocaloric or thermomagnetic materials and devices
• Mechanocaloric and thermomechanical material and devices
• Thermoelectric and magneto-thermoelectric materials and devices
• Thermal control devices: switches, diodes, regulators, transistors, thermal logic, circuits
• Solid-state laser cooling

• Electrocaloric or pyroelectric materials and devices
• Multicaloric and Multi-pyro materials and devices
• Spincaloritronic materials and devices
• Solid-state thermal storage materials and devices
• Other solid-state materials and related technologies