As its name suggests, the institute's primary research interests are in the field of physical chemistry.

The Institute was established by a resolution of the Presidium of the Government of the Polish People's Republic on 19 March 1955.

Its tasks were defined at that time: "The Institute of Physical Chemistry covers research on current issues of physical chemistry important from the point of view of the development of chemical sciences and the needs of the national economy".

The subsequent directors of the Institute were prof. Michał Śmiałowski (1960–1973), prof. Wojciech Zielenkiewicz (1973–1990), prof. Jan Popielawski (1990–1992), prof. Janusz Lipkowski (1992–2003), prof. Aleksander Jabłoński (2003–2011), prof. Robert Hołyst (2011–2015), prof. Marcin Opałło (2015-2023), dr hab.

Juan Carlos Colmenares Quintero Team leaders: prof. Joanna Niedziółka-Jönsson, dr hab.

Daniel Prochowicz and dr Tomasz Ratajczyk The work conducted by the Institute has given rise to five companies, operating mainly in the field of medical diagnostics:[4]