Since the war in Iran started February 28, worries about oil and gas have made the biggest headlines and sparked the loudest complaints from consumers.

But another bottleneck in the global supply network is causing alarm: a shortage of helium, an essential component used to make, among other things, semiconductors — those tiny chips that help run everything from electric vehicles to smartphones .

A prolonged shortage of helium could lead to a shortfall of advanced chips and have knock-on effects for electronics manufacturers who depend on them, or force others to scale back their datacenter plans.

Why is helium essential for chipmakers?

Considering that helium is colorless, odorless and the second-lightest element in the universe, it has a surprising list of applications as a gas or in liquid form.

Helium is used in things like MRI scanning, optical-fiber manufacturing, welding, leak detection and airbag inflation, not to mention balloons and dirigibles, said Phil Kornbluth, president of New…