Infineon Technologies AG (FSE: IFX / OTCQX: IFNNY) has achieved a breakthrough in the manufacturing of power semiconductors on 300-millimeter thin wafers. In February, the company received the first customer go-aheads for products of the CoolMOS family produced by the 300-millimeter line at their site in Villach, Austria. The production process based on the new technology has completed qualification from start to finish and customers have given the go-ahead.

"Infineon put its faith in this manufacturing technology very early on and continued to invest even in economically difficult times. The qualification of our entire 300-millimeter line represents a veritable leap ahead of the competition," says Dr. Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon Technologies AG. "300-millimeter thin-wafer manufacturing for power semiconductors will enable us, with the corresponding demand, to seize the opportunities that the market offers."

Infineon is the first and only company worldwide to produce power semiconductors on 300-millimeter thin wafers. Thanks to their larger diameter compared to standard 200-millimeter wafers, two-and-a-half times as many chips can be made from each one. Power semiconductors from Infineon feature low energy loss and compact design. Although not much thicker than a sheet of paper, the chips have electrically active structures on the front and back.

The next step is for the present manufacturing concept for CoolMOS products, qualified from start to finish, with the front-end site Villach and assembly of the thin chips at the back-end site Malacca, Malaysia, to be expanded to the front-end site Dresden. Here the focus is on high-volume production in a fully automated 300-millimeter line. The basis for the processes required and the manufacturing technology is currently being developed in research projects in Dresden. The technology transfer to Dresden is running on schedule and qualification of the first CoolMOS products will be completed in March. Shortly, in Villach more power semiconductor technologies will be transferred to the 300-millimeter line and produced. The development of the next power technology generation will focus on 300 instead of 200-millimeter technology.

"Our ability to innovate is the basis of our success – good ideas are turned into reality,” says Ploss. “In both Austria and in Saxony, we have the necessary conditions for this: technological know-how, well-educated and highly motivated specialists and exemplary support from government policy."

Last year, the independent research institute IMS Research (an IHS company) named Infineon as a market leader in power semiconductors. Infineon develops semiconductor and system solutions addressing three central challenges to modern society: energy efficiency, mobility, and security. In the 2012 fiscal year, ending September 30, the Company reported sales of Euro 3.9 billion with close to 26,700 employees worldwide.