09/29/2006 September 29, 2006 - The US is still driving the most semiconductor purchases and thus wields the most influence in electronic equipment design, but emerging markets are catching up fast, according to a new report from iSuppli Corp.
09/29/2006 Cascade Microtech, a Beaverton, Ore., maker of wafer-level measurement products, announced it has made significant technological advancements to its line of Infinity probes, offering finer pitches (down to 50 um), smaller contact area and higher frequency operation (up to 220 GHz).
09/28/2006 Fujitsu Limited announced it has signed an agreement with Spansion Japan Limited to purchase JV1 and JV2, two of Spansion semiconductor fabs in Japan for 17 billion yen, including the building, machinery for power generation, and production facilities.
09/28/2006 September 28, 2006 - NXP, the former chipmaking arm of Royal Philips, is buying out minority partner EDB Investments Pte. (EDBI) in Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Co. Pte. Ltd. (SSMC), their Singapore chipmaking JV with TSMC.
09/28/2006 In a strategic move to leverage their position in thermal management, the electronics group of Henkel has appointed Jason Brandi to the position of global product manager for phase change and thermal adhesives. Brandi will focus on new filler technologies and other mediums to enhance thermal conductivity and flow characteristics. He will also oversee the expansion of the current product line to address the fragmented power electronics market.
09/28/2006 September 28, 2006 - Spansion Japan Ltd. is selling two of its older semiconductor fabs in Japan to Fujitsu Ltd. for approximately $150 million, to help Spansion refocus resources on its 300mm and 45nm efforts, and boost Fujitsu's foundry business for standard logic LSI devices.
09/28/2006 September 28, 2006 - Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) reportedly is stepping up its R&D efforts for leading-edge chip manufacturing, in an effort to get ahead of the field and avoid underselling competition for the 65nm node that it's already seen at 90nm
09/28/2006 Raymor Industries Inc., a Montreal, Quebec, developer and producer of single-walled carbon nanotubes, nanomaterials and advanced materials, announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Raymor Nanotech Inc., has received an initial order for the supply of single-walled carbon nanotubes from a major US firm who is one of the 30 companies that form part of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
09/27/2006 September 27, 2006 - The International SEMATECH Manufacturing Initiative (ISMI) has laid out the initial scope of its 300mm Prime effort to encourage improvements in 300mm manufacturing productivity, and ultimately help ease the transition to the next wafer size -- 450mm.
09/27/2006 September 27, 2006 - DuPont and Honeywell Electronic Materials says they have used their metals creation knowledge for semiconductors to create a new process for making high-purity titanium metal powder, with "virtually the same strength and weight characteristics" as solid titanium but resulting in less machining and waste.
09/27/2006 Teredyne announced the sale of the J750 test system to the National IC Design Industrialization Base, Hangzhou (HICC) to meet the demands of local IC design houses in the ZheJiang Province. The Teradyne J750 is a high-throughput, parallel system for testing complex VSLI devices with embedded memory and analog cells.
09/27/2006 Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) announced that they have licensed ultra-flat package technology (UFPT) from MTBSolutions (MTBS). UFPT is primarily used for large-scale flip chip packaging structures where package flatness and the corresponding stress transmitted to the Si chip is a concern.
09/27/2006 The MicroElectronics Packaging and Test Engineering Council (MEPTEC) will hold its annual Packaging Roadmaps symposium titled "IC Packaging & Test Roadmaps: Device Trends Impact on Packaging & Test Technology and Supply Chain" on November 16, 2006 at the Hyatt San Jose.
09/27/2006 NanoSight Ltd, a provider of instruments for the optical detection and real time analysis of sub-micron particles, announced it has secured investment to support its current sales drive and develop new capabilities in nanoparticle analysis in the sub-500 nm region.
09/27/2006 Pliant Corp., a provider of value added films and packaging solutions, and NovaCentrix, a nanotechnology products company with focus on printable electronics, energetics and life sciences, announced a strategic alliance to create and commercialize solutions for performance and packaging needs.
09/27/2006 Sept. 25, 2006 (NanoCon Update) -- Biotech financier Steven Burrill headlined the final day of NanoCon International in Las Vegas on Friday. He spoke about what the nascent nanotech sector could learn from the history of biotech.
09/26/2006 Nanochemonics Inc., a Pulaski, Va., producer of a broad range of iron oxide nanoparticles, announced that Spotswood Capital LLC, a Greensboro, N.C .based investment firm, has agreed to provide growth capital to fuel the commercialization of the company's portfolio of iron oxide based nanoparticles.
