Convenors: Jürgen Schnack (Bielefeld), Luana Caron (Bielefeld), Giulia Lorusso (Bologna), Euan Brechin (Edinburgh)

This workshop deals with the topics of caloric materials and energy conversion technologies for solid-state cooling and heating applications at near-ambient and very-low temperatures. Temperature control systems are responsible for approximately half of the EU energy consumption expenditure. This figure alone amply justifies the need to dedicate great efforts to the search for alternative refrigeration and heat pump methods. Research on caloric materials has never been as active as it is now, due to the prospect of new-generation refrigerators and heat pumps that are energy efficient and environmentally friendly, on the one hand, and the policies on low-energy consumption and global warming refrigerants, on the other.

The workshop will consider caloric materials that fall under the umbrella of molecule-based materials and can respond to different sources of the driving stimulus, be it magnetic, electric, and/or mechanical. Since there is no clear-cut consensus on which type of caloric material holds the most promise, the workshop will explore a multi-front approach to permit transfer of methods already developed from the magnetocaloric subfield into the others. Academic and non-academic leaders, from top research institutions in Europe and overseas, will discuss ideas and recent progress in this highly interdisciplinary field comprising chemistry, materials science, physics, and device development.