Feb. 27, 2003 – Santa Clara, CA – Numerical Technologies Inc. has signed a joint development agreement with Applied Materials Inc. to address resolution enhancement technologies (RETs) for 193nm lithography processes.

The work, which is focused on providing semiconductor manufacturing solutions for sub-100nm chip production, will be done at Applied Materials’ Maydan Process Module Technology Center (PMTC) in Sunnyvale, CA.

“Our preliminary work with Numerical Technologies demonstrated significant benefits on our 90nm test chip designs, enabling us to better understand the impact of subwavelength patterning technology in the development of our Copper Interconnect Process Module,” said David Bergeron, corporate VP responsible for the PMTC at Applied Materials. “By collaborating with Numerical, we expect to accelerate our 90nm program and rapidly establish 193nm lithography capability for our customers, eventually extending it to the 65nm node.”

The PMTC, which closely simulates an actual fab environment, currently has 248- and 193nm lithography tools and associated track technology. Applied Materials’ joint development agreement with Numerical includes the use of its phase-shifting, optical proximity correction, and silicon simulation technologies in the PMTC’s lithography operations.