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Green hydrogen – fuel for the future

Green hydrogen is moving to the center of the discussion as it will play a crucial role in the global energy transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. Semiconductors play an essential role in electrolysis and in the production of the green energy used for this purpose. Read why.

Energy
Renewables
Article

Jul 09, 2025

A chemical element with manifold capabilities

Recent years have seen a massive shift to hydrogen in politics and industry: Political decision-makers around the world are recognizing the central role of hydrogen in the fight against climate change, setting national targets and building international partnerships. Experts around the world associate hydrogen with the hope of adding more flexibility to our energy system, while at the same time reducing dependence on a diminishing supply of fossil resources. The innovations and technological breakthroughs in green hydrogen are expected to help humankind reach climate protection targets and live more sustainably as societies.

solar panels with windmills in background
solar panels with windmills in background
solar panels with windmills in background

This chemical element indeed offers manifold capabilities: Besides being a versatile energy source, hydrogen can be used for example as an energy carrier, as an option for storing enormous amounts of energy, or as fuel for vehicles. For example, in a fuel cell, it produces only water vapor and warm air emissions. However, while many tech companies are working to solve the various challenges related to hydrogen technology, the key is to use green hydrogen, produced both with renewable energy and at affordable costs. The rapid acceleration of renewable energy generation and massive build-up of electrolysis capacities are therefore prerequisites for a truly sustainable hydrogen economy. And we are ready to support this transformation.

The global shift to green hydrogen is pivotal in the transition to clean energy and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. With its diverse applications across industries and potential in transportation, coupled with the role of semiconductors in its production, green hydrogen stands as a promising solution for a sustainable future.

Diverse fields of applications for green hydrogen

Green hydrogen is expected to replace fossil fuel on a large scale in many industries with a particularly high level of energy consumption, such as metallurgy, cement or heating. The same is true for the chemical sector (e.g. synthesis of plastics) and agriculture (e.g. fertilizers), which will use hydrogen in large quantities. Using fuel cell hydrogen is also expected to be crucial for decarbonization in the transportation sector, for example for railways, trucks or ships. And in the area of energy generation, renewable energies such as solar and wind power are expanding massively. But their production is dependent on daylight and weather conditions, which is why options for large-scale energy storage using hydrogen as a storage medium are also becoming increasingly important. Energy efficiency is the key in all these areas, with semiconductor solutions ensuring that as little energy as possible is lost during conversion and transmission.

petrochemical-plant
petrochemical-plant
petrochemical-plant

Hydrogen electrolysis: How it works

The combination of renewable energy and efficient power semiconductors from Infineon is a key lever in the large-scale production of green hydrogen. This is why Infineon is playing a decisive role in shaping the development of a green hydrogen economy – wherever technological challenges need to be mastered along the way. The core question is: What meaningful technical contributions can make to help the transformation to a decarbonized society using green hydrogen a success? As a leading manufacturer of power semiconductors for wind power and photovoltaic inverters, Infineon enables electricity generation from renewable energies, which is key to the production of green hydrogen.

 

  • Production of hydrogen based on power semiconductors: The industrial production of green hydrogen on a large scale is only possible with power semiconductors: They enable electrolysis technology, a major way to produce hydrogen by decomposing water into its basic components. Here the synthesis of renewable energy and Infineon’s efficient power semiconductors provides significant leverage, because the electrolysis process for the production of green hydrogen requires very strong direct currents (DCs). This means that the alternating current (AC) from the power grid must first be converted into DC with the help of Infineon’s high-power semiconductors. Several synchronized high-power switches permit a combined system performance of over 50 megawatts.
  • Optimizing energy flow with less loss: Infineon power semiconductors facilitate energy-efficient delivery by efficiently converting alternating current (AC) supplied by the power grid into direct current (DC), or by adjusting direct current from solar plants that are coupled with electrolysis plants. This way Infineon power semiconductors not only increase the amount of energy that can be harvested for example from solar arrays, they also help minimize energy loss during transmission.
  • Energy-efficient use of green hydrogen: Infineon’s solutions enable the energy-efficient use of green hydrogen for example in the fields of mobility and transportation. Here our components are key to monitoring the process chain from energy generation in the fuel cells to energy conversion in the drive motor, and - in the event of hazards like gas leaks, short circuits, thermal runaway - shifting the system to a safe state. For this purpose, Infineon offers the necessary sensors (gas, pressure, current, speed), special ICs for monitoring battery and fuel cells, and a broad portfolio of automotive microcontrollers specially developed for safety-critical real-time applications.
  • Semiconductor solutions as backbone for connectivity: As in most aspects of our modern life, ubiquitous connectivity plays a vital role in all areas of green hydrogen production, transmission and consumption. Infineon semiconductors for wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth® are the backbone of many ultra-low power connectivity solutions enabling maximum safety and state-of-the-art, interoperable communication services using only minimum energy.

Learn more about the hydrogen electrolyzer!

Hydrogen technology in transportation 

Let's take a closer look at the role of hydrogen in transportation as this is a key sector in terms of meeting overall CO2 reduction targets. As market leader in automotive semiconductors, we are already a key enabler of electric vehicles and support the automotive industry on the path to zero-carbon mobility. Both battery electric vehicles and hydrogen-based fuel-cell electric drives will be needed in order to achieve decarbonization across different transportation types.

ee campaign hydrogen tram
ee campaign hydrogen tram
ee campaign hydrogen tram

The first hydrogen-powered passenger trains are already on the tracks in Europe and we will soon also see hydrogen in commercial vehicles such as trucks. In general, the hydrogen-based fuel cell drive will most likely be the preferred option for heavier loads and longer distances, while battery electric drives will become the predominant solution for light commercial and passenger vehicles with ranges of up to 400 km.

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