Infineon unveils power chips for more energy efficient transport

With the energy transition on everyone's lips, new technologies that advance the industry in productive ways could represent the breakthroughs needed to shift away from fossil fuels, such as a new set of power chips recently unveiled by Infineon.

Power semiconductors can channel higher voltages and block stronger currents than a typical chip can, which could help high-power industries - such as high-speed rail - become greener and offer stiffer competition to travelling by car.

Pushes in public transport, which is often more energy and space-efficient than cars, will be essential in the shift away from fossil fuels. Major economies such as the EU have already mapped out plans to make urban mobility more viable.

Read more: The EU's plans to clean up urban mobility

The new chips from Infineon have already reportedly proven their worth in a joint field test conducted by Siemens Mobility and Stadtwerke München (SWM).

The test saw a car in Munich equipped with three power modules and used in passenger service for a total of around 40,389 miles (65,000 km).

The power chips are based on a silicon carbide formula which can reportedly reduce the power needs of vehicles by around 10% while also "significantly reducing engine noise". These tests were conducted under Horizon 2020's PINTA scheme, itself part of the Shift2Rail initiative.

The firm hopes these chips could hope to revolutionise rail transport by allowing them to use far less power while operating at maximum capacity, although they could also see use in the development of new EVs.

"Innovative semiconductor solutions for rail technology are an important driver for green mobility. The successful field test with streetcars in Munich demonstrates the benefits of SiC technology for manufacturers, rail operators, and residents,” said Peter Wawer, the head of Infineon's Industrial Power Control Divison said in a statement.

Integrating these chips into rail systems can prove a challenge and requires them to be particularly robust, and high-switching speeds will be needed for the traction control and rapid speed changes found during rail travel while also ensuring a longer service life.

The company claims the chips are overall more energy-efficient than other similar chips and lead to far less power being wasted.

Infineon hopes these chips, alongside the application of solar panels on vehicles and pushes in EV charging technology, could cause the transport sector to become greener more rapidly - leading to faster emissions reductions.

Advances in high-speed rail or more experimental public transport systems such as air taxis and eVTOL could be key to reducing the overreliance on cars that is hindering the shift from fossil fuels.

However, the ongoing semiconductor shortage could continue to hamper the production of electric vehicles due to them also being required for consumer electronics.

Read more: The vehicles of the future - what's making change possible?

Both the EU and US have pledged to significantly increase domestic production of chips in order to counter production pitfalls faced during the pandemic.

The EU's new Chips Act could see the bloc produce as much as 20% of the world's semiconductors and it has ambitions to become a powerhouse in semiconductor R&D and offer groundbreaking new technologies for the market.

Infineon, as an EU-based chips firm, could see significant investment over the next few years to help realise these goals.

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