SAN JOSE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–April 13, 2005–Silicon Valley Technology Center (SVTC), a division of Cypress Semiconductor Corp., and American Semiconductor, Inc. (ASI), announced that ASI will be using SVTC’s R&D manufacturing services to commercialize its Flexfet advanced Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI) CMOS wafer fabrication process for manufacturing. ASI, a fabless semiconductor company that develops and commercializes process technology, is avoiding significant capital investment by using SVTC’s 65-nm capable, 200- and 300-mm R&D wafer fab, to develop and qualify its process technology.
“By perfecting our technology at SVTC, ASI is able to resolve fundamental limitations of CMOS for next-generation scaling of advanced microelectronics,” said Doug Hackler, founder and president of ASI. “We are also able to cost-effectively move our business forward and more aggressively pursue and support our customer base.”
Flexfet is a new process that supports a variety of technologies, such as novel dielectrics, metal gate materials, 3D and MEMS integration, all beyond the scope of standard CMOS capabilities. The process provides a significant advancement in dynamic threshold control that reduces the scaling barriers associated with power. It is also RF-capable, inherently resistant to radiation and allows low power operations well below one volt.
“As R&D costs continue to rise, companies with emerging technology development needs, capital equipment manufacturers and materials suppliers are challenged to cost-effectively migrate their products and processes from prototype to manufacturability,” said Bert Bruggeman, SVTC’s managing director. “Our work with ASI is an example of how to overcome those challenges and allows ASI to realize a significant R&D cost savings while rapidly commercializing its advanced process technology.”
SVTC’s 200-mm wafer fab will support ASI’s immediate demand for the Flexfet offering and prototype production is booked for Summer 2005. Production volumes are forecast to be manufactured at Cypress’s Bloomington, Minn.-based Fab IV facility. SVTC is also supporting ASI’s requirements to scale the initial 0.18 micron offering to 0.13-micron, 90-nm and beyond.
Cypress’s SVTC enables third-party engineering groups to take products from proof-of-concept to manufacturing through a state-of-the-art toolset in a 16,000 square-foot clean room in Silicon Valley. Customers are also able to tap more than 20 years of process development expertise. SVTC offers best practices in fab process engineering, statistical process control, quality management, failure analysis, and design for manufacturing methodologies as part of its development toolbox.