Wilmington, Delaware/Lehigh, Pennsylvania–DuPont and Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. today announced that they have formed a joint venture–DuPont Air Products NanoMaterials L.L.C.–to develop, manufacture, and market colloidal silica-based slurries

for electronic precision polishing or planarization applications such as silicon wafer polishing and chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) processes used in the manufacture of semiconductors. Terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.

The 50/50 joint venture, which began operations this month, will serve an estimated $500 million per year market that is growing at a rate of 25% per year. DuPont and Air Products have been working together on the CMP market opportunity for more than 1 year under the terms of a sales and distribution agreement and joint development agreement. DuPont already is a major supplier of colloidal silica slurries for silicon wafer polishing.

DuPont Air Products NanoMaterials L.L.C. (to be known as DA NanoMaterials in the trade) will be headquartered in Carlsbad, CA. The venture will operate a state-of-the-art applications and formulation laboratory in Tempe, AZ., as well as an existing DuPont manufacturing and formulation facility in Ruabon, U.K., which has been acquired by the venture.