09/23/2004 (September 23, 2004) Shanghai —Testing and packaging houses located in China, including Amkor Technology and Global Advanced Packaging Technology (GAPT), will grow to meet regional increasing demand, as reported by industry makers.
09/23/2004 (September 23, 2004) Singapore and Fremont, Calif.—
STATS ChipPAC Ltd.'s Singapore operation has achieved ISO/TS 16949:2002 certification by PSB Certification Pte Ltd. This certification marks the fifth STATS ChipPAC operation to do so.
09/23/2004 NanoBio Corp., in Michigan, was nearing the end of six-month clinical trials for a treatment for cold sores and was preparing for a similar round of testing for nail fungus treatment. It also was using $3.2 million in federal funds to prove that its microbe-killing nanoemulsions posed no safety threats.
09/22/2004 September 22, 2004 - Akrion has announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Goldfinger Technologies LLC, has received an order for five Goldfinger Mach2HP single wafer systems. The Mach2HP cleaners will ship to a DRAM manufacturer in Asia for its most advanced (<130nm) 300mm copper process manufacturing line.
09/22/2004 September 22, 2004 - Worldwide semiconductor equipment sales have overshot orders for the first time in a year, and IC orders are falling back as well -- but VLSI Research claims the market simply is taking a pause after a big meal earlier in the year, and not pushing back from the dinner table.
09/22/2004 It took a while, but the U.S. post office finally delivered for R. Buckminster Fuller. About two decades ago, nanoscientists gave Fuller their stamp of approval by naming a molecule in his honor. This summer, the U.S. Postal Service decided he rated first-class treatment as well.
09/21/2004 (September 21, 2004) Manhasset, N.Y.—Agere Systems announced that its engineers have found the right mix of packaging ingredients to enable the semiconductor industry to successfully implement lead-free packaging. The mix consists of tin-copper with a nickel undercoating, which meets the European Union's RoHS legislation and reportedly mitigates tin "whiskering" problems.
09/21/2004 September 21, 2004 - Demand for semiconductor equipment has slowed, but SEMI said its forecast for strong full-year growth won't change, and may in fact be too conservative.
09/21/2004 At the turn of the 21st century, an array of small tech startups sought to satisfy telecomÂ’s need for new components. The technology largely delivered what the industry needed. Then, the economy contracted and telecom system providers stopped buying. In the end, superior technology couldnÂ’t overcome the evaporating market.
09/20/2004 (September 20, 2004) Dallas, Texas—The Fabless Semiconductor Association (FSA) announced today that global public fabless revenue grew 44 percent year over year in the second quarter (Q2) of 2004, totaling $8.3 billion. North American fabless companies represented 76 percent of Q2 2004 total fabless revenue, followed by Taiwan, which contributed 20 percent, the FSA said. Europe and China each represented two percent of worldwide sales.
09/20/2004 With only 25 employees and barely two years old, Radant Technologies has taken the lead in a race to bring MEMS-based radio frequency switches to market. It squeezed out defense-contracting giants Northrop Grumman and TRW Corp. along the way, and now has a $5-million government grant.
09/17/2004 (September 17, 2004) Sao Paulo, Brazil—Intel Corp. CEO Craig Barrett ruled out building a chip manufacturing plant in Brazil, South America's largest country, because of high labor costs. ``There are other areas of the world that are more competitive,'' Barrett told reporters at a news conference. He cited China, India and Russia as possibilities.
09/17/2004 (September 17, 2004) San Jose, Calif.—North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.52 billion in orders in August 2004 and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.00, according to an August 2004 report published by SEMI. A book-to-bill of 1.00 means that $100 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.
09/17/2004 September 17, 2004 - North American-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.52 billion in orders in August (three-month average basis) and a book-to-bill ratio of 1.00 according to SEMI. A book-to-bill of 1.00 means that $100 worth of orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month.
09/17/2004 Smart homes, those high-tech houses where the lights, sprinkler systems, appliances and heating and cooling systems all communicate through Web-based wireless networks, still appear to be only for the very wealthy. Thanks to MEMS, the basic building blocks are actually there for bringing intelligent homes to the masses.
